Presented 


7 • /.  /vT, 


PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


by  "ScA'^CAvn  cDo  C \ . 

Division  JV6864- 


Section 


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THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN 
THE  UNITED  STATES 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK  • BOSTON  • CHICAGO  • DALLAS  , 
ATLANTA  • SAN  FRANCISCO 


' MACMILLAN  & CO..  Limited 

LONDON  • BOMBAY  • CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 


THE  MACMILLAN  CO.  OF  CANADA,  Ltd. 

TORONTO 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM 
IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


AN  INVESTIGATION  FOR  THE  COMMISSION  ON 
RELATIONS  WITH  JAPAN  APPOINTED  BY 
THE  FEDERAL  COUNCIL  OF  THE 
CHURCHES  OF  CHRIST 
IN  AMERICA 


BY 

H.  A.  MILLIS 


PROFESSOR  OF  ECONOMICS  UNIVERSITY  OF  KANSAS 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

1915 


All  rights  reserved 


Copyright,  1915, 

By  the  MACMILLAN  COMPANY. 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.  Published  June,  1915. 


NoTfoaob  IPicBS 

J.  8.  Cushing  Co.  — Berwick  & Smith  Co. 
Norwood,  Mass.,  tJ.S.A. 


The  '^Japanese  Problem  in  America"  is  published  for 
the  Commission  on  Relations  with  Japan,  under  the 
authority  of  the  Federal  Council  of  the  Churches  of 
Christ  in  America. 

CHARLES  S.  MACFARLAND, 
General  Secretary. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2017  with  funding  from 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


https://archive.org/details/japaneseproblemi00mill_0 


FOREWORD 


The  Commission  on  Relations  with  Japan,  appointed 
by  the  Federal  Council  of  the  Churches  of  Christ  in 
America  at  the  request  of  missionaries  in  Japan,  believ- 
ing that  its  most  immediate  need  was  that  of  correct 
information,  engaged  the  expert  services  of  Professor 
H.  A.  Millis  of  the  University  of  Kansas,  to  go  to  the 
Pacific  Coast  and  make  such  an  investigation  as  would 
enable  the  Commission  to  proceed  with  intelligent  sym- 
pathy in  the  performance  of  its  task. 

At  the  same  time  the  Federal  Council,  at  the  request 
of  the  Commission,  sent  its  President,  Professor  Shailer 
Mathews,  and  Rev.  Sidney  L.  Gulick  to  Japan,  on  be- 
half of  the  Christian  churches  of  America,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  expressing  our  good  will  and  to  bring  back  to 
us  a report  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  Christian 
churches  and  the  people  of  Japan. 

The  Commission  also  conveyed  a memorial  to  the 
President  and  to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
as  follows : 

“The  awakening  of  Asia  and  her  rapid  acquisition 
of  important  elements  of  Occidental  civilization  inaugu- 
rates a new  era  in  world-history  in  which  Asia  is  to  play 
a great  and  increasingly  important  role.  Whether  that 
r61e  shall  be  one  of  peace,  good  will  and  mutual  coopera- 
tion, or  one  controlled  by  increasing  suspicion  and  fear 

vii 


FOREWORD 


between  the  East  and  the  West  will  depend  largely  on 
the  attitude  of  the  western  nations  themselves. 

“ It  has  seemed  to  many  of  our  citizens  who  have 
become  familiar  with  the  questions  raised  by  this  more 
intimate  and  ever  increasing  contact  with  the  Orient 
that  the  United  States  might  well  adopt  a more  ade- 
quate Oriental  policy.  Therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  the  Commission  on  Relations  with 
Japan  appointed  by  the  Federal  Council  of  the  Churches 
of  Christ  in  America  urge  upon  Congress  and  upon 
the  people  of  the  United  States  the  importance  of 
adopting  an  Oriental  policy  based  upon  a just  and 
equitable  regard  for  the  interests  of  all  the  nations  con- 
cerned, and  to  this  end  suggests  that  the  entire  immi- 
gration problem  be  taken  up  at  an  early  date,  providing 
for  comprehensive  legislation  covering  all  phases  of  the 
question  (such  as  the  limitation  of  immigration  and  the 
registration,  distribution,  employment,  education,  and 
naturalization  of  immigrants)  in  such  a way  as  to  con- 
serve American  institutions,  to  protect  American  labor 
from  dangerous  economic  competition,  and  to  promote 
an  intelligent  and  enduring  friendliness  among  the  peo- 
ple of  all  nations.” 

In  authorizing  the  publication  of  this  report  of  Pro- 
fessor Millis  the  Commission  does  so  for  the  purpose 
of  placing  this  information  before  the  churches  and  the 
people  of  the  United  States  for  such  help  as  it  may 
render  in  forming  an  intelligent  opinion.  Neither  the 
Commission  nor  the  Federal  Council  is  committed  to 
its  matters  of  detail,  but  they  are  convinced  of  its  gen- 
eral value  and  they  believe  that  it  should  be  available 
for  our  people.  It  is  hoped  that  this  report  and  the 
report  of  the  Federal  Council  commissioners  to  Japan 
may  contribute  to  an  understanding  that  shall  bring  the 
East  and  the  West  into  a spirit  of  sympathy  and  unity 

viii 


FOREWORD 


in  the  universal  Kingdom  of  God  and  assist  in  placing 
our  international  relations  upon  a just,  secure,  and  abid- 
ing moral  foundation. 

Hamilton  Holt,  Chairman. 

Charles  R.  Brown, 

William  I.  Haven, 

Charles  R.  Henderson, 

E.  R.  Hendrix, 

Jeremiah  W.  Jenks, 

Albert  G.  Lawson, 

Frederick  Lynch, 

Francis  J.  McConnell, 

John  R.  Mott, 

Frank  Mason  North, 

Doremus  Scudder, 

Robert  E.  Speer, 

George  E.  Vincent, 

Amos  P.  Wilder, 

Commission  on  Relations  with  Japan. 

Sidney  L.  Gulick, 

Representative  of  the  Commission  on 
Relations  with  Japan. 

Charles  S.  Macfarland,  Secretary. 


IX 


PREFACE 


Although  for  more  than  six  years  there  has  been  ef- 
fective restriction  of  the  immigration  of  Japanese  labor- 
ers into  the  United  States,  various  measures  have  been 
under  consideration  to  replace  the  agreement  through 
which  this  restriction  has  been  effected.  Some  of  the 
measures  would  be  more,  others  less,  restrictive  than 
the  existing  agreement.  Their  consideration  shows  that 
the  immigration  question  has  not  been  settled  in  a 
manner  satisfactory  to  all.  At  the  same  time,  much 
discriminatory  legislation  bearing  upon  the  life  and 
activities  of  the  Japanese,  and  possibly  other  Asiatics, 
in  this  country  has  been  proposed  and  some  of  it 
enacted  into  law.  The  most  important  measure  thus 
far  enacted  is  the  alien  land  law  of  California.  Still 
other  discriminatory  measures  are  now  being  urged, 
while  outside  of  the  legislative  field  there  has  been  and 
still  is  much  in  the  relations  between  the  races  that  is 
unsatisfactory. 

The  Japanese  Problem,  it  is  evident,  involves  two 
questions,  one  relating  to  the  admission  of  immigrants, 
the  other  to  the  treatment  accorded  those  who  are  here. 
In  the  chapters  which  follow  the  writer  has  attempted 
to  present  in  a frank  and  conscientious  way  the  more 
important  things  bearing  upon  both  of  these  questions. 
It  has  been  his  plan  to  bring  together  historic  and 
present-day  facts  so  that  all  essential  to  drawing  con- 


XI 


PREFACE 


elusions  with  reference  to  proper  policy  shall  receive 
due  recognition. 

In  order  that  this  survey  of  the  situation  in  the  West 
might  be  written,  several  weeks  were  spent  in  making 
personal  investigations.  Most  of  the  time  available  for 
the  investigation  was  spent  in  California,  which  has 
been  the  storm  center  in  matters  connected  with  Asiatic 
immigration,  but  some  days  were  spent  in  each  of  the 
other  Coast  states  and  in  Utah  and  Colorado.  I ob- 
served as  much  as  possible,  conferred  with  numerous 
representative  men  of  different  classes,  and  obtained  as 
much  statistical  and  other  data  as  I could.  I was  for- 
tunate in  the  fact  that  I was  acquainted  with  many 
representative  men  and  had  first-hand  knowledge  of 
immigration  and  industries  in  the  West  by  reason  of 
my  employment  as  agent  in  charge  of  the  investigations 
made  five  years  ago  by  the  Immigration  Commission  in 
the  Rocky  Mountain  and  Pacific  Coast  states.  My 
task  was  less  difficult  than  it  would  have  been  because 
it  involved  chiefly  bringing  the  things  investigated  and 
reported  on  to  the  government  down  to  date.  Inas- 
much as  my  knowledge  of  the  earlier  situation*  was 
incorporated  in  three  volumes  of  the  reports  published 
by  the  Immigration  Commission,  these  volumes  have 
been  extensively  quoted  in  these  chapters. 

I know  that  there  is  still  much  for  me  to  learn  about 
different  phases  of  the  Japanese  problem  here  discussed. 
I know,  also,  that  in  spite  of  the  pains  I have  taken  to 
avoid  it,  I cannot  hope  to  have  escaped  falling  into 
error  here  and  there.  If  only  I have  succeeded  in 
making  a slight  contribution  to  the  knowledge  of  fact 
required  for  the  solution  of  the  problem,  I shall  regard 
my  time  as  having  been  well  spent. 

xii 


PREFACE 


In  closing,  I wish  to  express  my  obligation  for  time 
and  effort  given  by  many  persons  who  have  materially 
assisted  in  making  these  chapters  possible.  It  is  im- 
possible to  name  all  of  them.  I wish,  however,  to 
acknowledge  my  great  indebtedness  to  Dr.  H.  H.  Guy, 
the  consular  officers  of  the  Japanese  government  in 
San  Francisco,  Portland,  and  Seattle,  and  the  secre- 
taries and  other  officers  of  the  Japanese  associations  in 
these  and  numerous  other  cities.  Finally,  I wish  to 
express  my  appreciation  of  aid  extended  by  the  Com- 
mission on  Relations  with  Japan  of  the  Federal  Council 
of  the  Churches  of  Christ  in  America. 

H.  A.  MILLIS. 


December  15, 1914. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Chapter  I.  The  Immigration  of  Japanese  to  the  United 
States. 

The  immigration  of  Japanese  before  and  since  1885.  The 
number  larger  after  1898.  The  classes  from  which  the  immi- 
grants were  drawn.  Though  the  student  element  large,  the 
primary  motive  economic  gain.  The  influence  of  emigration 
and  supply  companies  and  boarding  houses.  The  Hawaiian 
Islands  served  as  a stepping-stone.  The  movement  from 
Canada  and  Mexico.  Opposition  to  Japanese  immigration. 
Immigration  greatly  restricted  by  the  agreement  relative  to 
passports  and  the  President’s  order  of  March  14,  1907.  The 
agreement  faithfully  observed  by  Japan.  It  and  the  Presi- 
dent’s order  have  given  effective  restriction.  Admissions 
and  departures  since  1908,  and  effect  on  the  labor  supply. 

The  large  influx  of  women,  many  of  them  “ picture  brides.” 

A new  factor  of  growth  in  the  American-born.  An  estimate 
of  the  Japanese  population  of  the  Western  states.  The 
Japanese  as  an  element  in  the  population  of  California,  and 
in  the  labor  supply.  Their  occupational  distribution  . . 1 

Chapter  II.  The  Japanese  as  Wage  Earners  in  Indus- 
trial Pursuits. 

Most  of  the  Japanese  first  employed  as  unskilled  laborers 
in  a narrow  range  of  occupations.  A review  of  their  employ- 
ment on  the  railways,  in  the  lumber  mills,  and  in  the  salmon 
canneries.  With  a strong  demand  for  labor,  many  Japanese 
were  employed  on  the  railways.  Found  favor  because  of 
lower  wages  accepted,  convenient  organization,  efficiency. 


XV 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


and  good  behavior  in  camp.  Even  before  restriction  their 
wages  tended  to  rise  relatively  to  those  paid  others.  With 
restriction  underpayment  has  ceased.  A considerable  num- 
ber have  advanced  to  supervisory  positions.  In  the  railway 
shops  the  Japanese  have  made  considerable  occupational  ad- 
vance, and  with  restriction  of  immigration  the  former  general 
underpayment  has  rapidly  disappeared.  The  Japanese  found 
employment  in  a limited  number  of  lumber  mills  in  the  North- 
west, where  they  were  formerly  employed  at  lower  wages 
than  were  paid  to  others,  including  the  East  Indians.  Since 
1907  their  number  has  decreased,  underpayment  has  tended 
to  disappear,  and  they  have  advanced  somewhat  in  the  occu- 
pational scale.  The  Japanese  formerly  occupied  a conspicu- 
ous place  in  the  salmon  canneries,  but,  unlike  the  railway 
companies  and  the  managers  of  the  lumber  mills,  the  salmon 
packers  have  not  found  them  to  be  as  satisfactory  as  other 
laborers.  A summary  statement  of  important  facts  relating 
to  the  employment  of  Japanese  in  industry  previous  to  1907. 
Subsequent  changes  ........  30 

Chapter  III.  The  Japanese  in  Western  Cities:  Their 
Work  and  Business. 

The  formation  of  an  urban  population.  Two  groups  of 
economic  activities.  Employment  in  factories  and  workshops, 
domestic  service,  and  in  miscellaneous  occupations.  Have 
“filled  in”  as  cheap  laborers  conveniently  secured.  Japa- 
nese business  for  Japanese  patrons.  Increasing  number  of 
establishments,  some  of  them  for  “ American  trade.”  The 
laundry  trade,  the  restaurant  trade,  and  the  provision  and 
grocery  stores  show  the  plane  of  competition.  Serious  com- 
petition limited  to  a few  cases.  Population  changes  and  the 
formation  of  colonies.  Few  whites  employed  by  Japanese; 
the  “ living-in  ” system  prevails.  Housing  conditions. 
Changes  since  1909.  Business  in  Los  Angeles.  Gain  in 
American  trade,  but  more  trading  by  Japanese  at  American 
stores.  Improvement  in  standards,  increase  in  wages,  less 
underbidding,  changing  opinion.  Opposition  in  Seattle.  The 
plane  of  competition  and  opposition 50 


XVI 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Chapter  IV.  The  Japanese  in  Agriculture  in  Western 
States  other  than  California. 

The  large  proportion  of  Japanese  in  agricultural  pursuits 
explained.  Agricultural  activities  in  Idaho,  Utah,  and  Colo- 
rado. Observations  in  northern  Colorado.  Japanese  as 
farm  laborers  and  tenant  farmers  in  Washington.  Character 
of  the  farming,  rents,  labor,  etc.  The  situation  in  Oregon. 

Farm  statistics,  crops,  reduction  of  “ wild  lands,”  rent  prices, 
community  opinion,  etc. 79 

Chapter  V.  The  Japanese  as  Agricultural  Laborers  in 
California. 

The  Japanese  in  agriculture  in  California.  Investigations 
of  farm  labor  by  the  State  Commissioner  of  Labor  and  the 
Immigration  Commission.  The  Japanese  and  intensive  farm- 
ing. Occupations.  Important  questions.  The  Immigration 
Commission  quoted  at  length  with  reference  to  history  of 
employment  of  Japanese,  underbidding,  organization,  and 
adaptation  to  labor  needs.  Wage  data.  Competition  for- 
merly not  on  equal  terms.  Japanese  labor,  the  community’s 
interests,  and  agricultural  expansion.  The  real  problem. 
Recent  developments  not  significant.  The  present  labor 
situation.  Commissioner  MacKenzie’s  conclusion  and  the 
Senate’s  adverse  resolution.  Conclusions  of  the  writer’s 
and  farmer’s  opinions.  No  increase  in  the  bunk-house  popu- 
lation desirable,  whatever  the  race 102 

Chapter  VI.  Japanese  Farming  in  California. 

The  number  and  acreage  of  Japanese  farms.  Crops  grown. 

Size  of  farms.  Progress  of  Japanese  as  farmers  explained  by 
various  facts.  The  effects  of  Japanese  farming  . . . 131 

Chapter  VII.  Japanese  Farming  : Some  Community  Ob- 
servations. 

Florin  — The  Florin  district  and  the  place  occupied  by 
Japanese  twenty-five  years  ago  and  the  development  of  a 
new  Florin.  Progress  and  present  position  of  the  Japanese 
as  farmers.  Community  effects.  Japanese  standards.  Busi- 
ness relations.  Community  opinion.  Social  considerations. 


XVll 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


The  Vaca  Valley  — Fruit-growing  and  the  Japanese. 

Some  labor  history.  Leasing  by  Japanese.  Character  of  the 
tenure.  Community  effects.  Changes  since  1908.  Rela- 
tions between  the  races. 

Southern  California  — The  Japanese  population  and 
the  position  occupied.  Japanese  farmers  in  Los  Angeles 
county  and  their  competition  with  other  growers.  Tenancy 
explained.  Some  typical  localities  where  tenant  farming  is 
found.  Other  localities.  General  impressions.  Anti-Japa- 
nese feeling  not  strong. 

Livingston  — An  exceptional  community.  Personal  ob- 
servations ..........  152 

Chapter  VIII.  Alien  Land  Legislation  in  California. 

The  alien  land  law  of  1913  the  outcome  of  a long  struggle. 
Preelection  promises.  Legislative  history,  organized  lobby- 
ing, and  organized  opposition  to  any  legislation.  Provisions 
of  the  law  enacted  and  of  the  treaty  with  Japan.  Protests 
from  the  Japanese  government.  The  law  unjust,  impolitic, 
and  unnecessary.  No  real  problem  calling  for  such  legisla- 
tion. Nevertheless  the  great  majority  of  Californians  favor 
the  law.  The  present  movement  to  prohibit  the  leasing  of 
agricultural  lands  .........  197 

Chapter  IX.  Japanese  Characteristics  and  the  Western 
Mind. 

Widespread  opposition  to  the  Japanese.  Why  ? They 
have  much  merit  in  education,  eagerness  to  learn  English, 
sobriety,  observance  of  law,  etc.  They  are,  however,  a 
colored  race  ; are  racially  different ; have  inherited  the  preju- 
dice against  the  Chinese ; have  given  rise  to  economic  con- 
flict; are  accused  of  frequent  breaches  of  contract,  and  of 
being  ambitious,  “ cocky,”  and  clannish.  The  attitude  of  the 
Japanese  government  and  Japanese  organizations.  Agita- 
tion. The  questions  of  assimilation  and  amalgamation  . . 227 

Chapter  X.  The  Problem  of  Assimilation. 

Conflicting  views  relating  to  the  possibility  of  assimilating 
the  Japanese.  The  writer’s  conclusions.  The  Japanese  sen- 

xviii 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


PAGE 

sitive  to  their  environment,  conform  quickly  to  certain  stand- 
ards— as  in  dress,  furnishings,  etc.,  and  make  rapid  prog- 
ress in  learning  English.  The  children  and  the  schools. 

What  of  religion,  patriotism,  and  clannishness  ? Complete 
assimilability  must  remain  a disputed  question.  Will  the 
West  give  necessary  cooperation?  Without  a restricted 
immigration,  assimilation  would  not  take  place.  Race 
mixture  pretty  much  of  a “ bogie  ” 251 

Chapter  XI.  Some  Suggestions  Considered. 

Two  questions  raised  by  the  “Japanese  Problem,”  one  re- 
lating to  admission,  the  other  to  the  treatment  accorded  those 
admitted.  Conclusions  of  the  Immigration  Commission  re- 
lating to  Asiatic  immigration.  The  agreement  with  Japan 
effective,  but  Japanese  immigration  always  under  discussion. 
Exclusion  bills  and  the  West.  The  position  of  the  Japanese 
government.  Dissatisfaction  in  Japan.  American  standards 
should  be  protected,  but  exclusion  under  present  circum- 
stances would  be  illogical  and  an  affront  to  Japan.  Dr. 
Gulick’s  plan  and  a modification  of  it.  Its  merits.  General 
restriction  of  immigration  from  Europe  and  Asia  needed. 

Once  admitted,  equal  treatment  should  be  accorded  immi- 
grants. The  naturalization  law  discriminates.  Amendment 


to  eliminate  racial  distinctions  considered.  Any  legislation 
involves  risk 276 

APPENDIX  A.  Extracts  from  the  Treaty  of  Commerce 
AND  Navigation  between  Japan'  and  the  United 
States 313 

APPENDIX  B.  California’s  Alien  Land  Law  . . . 316 

APPENDIX  C.  A Statement  Concerning  the  Struggle 
OVER  the  Enactment  of  the  California  Alien  Land 
Law 320 


XIX 


' I 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


FACING  PAGE 

, I . Florin  when  Grapes  are  being  Shipped  . . . .170 

2.  Florin’s  Basket  Factory  . . . . . . .170 

3.  A New  “ American  ” Cottage  in  Florin  . . . -171 

4.  Florin’s  New  Hotel  . . . . . . . -171 

5.  A Japanese  Building  built  by  Japanese  ....  171 

6.  The  House  erected  by  a White  Rancher  who  recently 

moved  to  Florin  . . . . . . .172 

7.  A less  Well-to-do  White  Neighbor’s  House  and  “ Patch  ” 172 

8.  Where  Japanese  grow  Grapes  . . . . -173 

9.  Harvesting  the  Strawberry  Crop  — a Picker  of  the  “ Stu- 

dent Class”  . . . . . . . • 173 

10.  Developed  from  Pasture  Land  by  the  Japanese  Owner  . 174 

11.  Made  by  the  Japanese  Owner  ......  174 

12.  As  it  was  when  leased  by  the  Japanese  ....  175 

13.  The  Same  Land  growing  Strawberries  Three  Months 

Later 175 

14.  A Japanese  Farm  ........  176 

15.  The  Home  of  the  Largest  Japanese  Family  in  the  Com- 

munity . . . . , . . . .176 

16.  As  developed  from  “ Raw  ” Land  . . . . -177 

17.  One  of  the  Best  of  the  Ranch  Houses  built  by  Japanese  . 177 

18.  A Japanese  Settlement  on  a 500-Acre  Ranch  . . .188 

19.  The  Same  Ranch  looking  in  the  Other  Direction  . . 188 

20.  A Typical  Japanese  Settlement  near  Gardena  . . .189 

21.  The  Old  and  the  New  separated  by  a Wire  Fence  . . 189 

22.  A Typical  Japanese  Tenant’s  House  ....  190 

23.  The  Carson  Ranch  — “Hay  Land”.  . . . .190 

24.  The  Same  Carson  Ranch  — irrigated  and  producing  Straw- 

berries . 190 


XXI 


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THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN 
THE  UNITED  STATES 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE 

UNITED  STATES 

Japanese  in  the  United  States.  — According  to 
the  Census,  the  Japanese  population  of  the  con- 
tinental United  States  April  15,  1910,  was  72,157. 
There  is  good  reason  to  believe,  however,  that  the 
enumeration  was  by  no  means  complete  and  that 
the  true  number  was  several  thousand  larger  than 
the  number  recorded.  Since  1910,  the  Japanese 
population  has  changed  little.  In  all  probability 
the  number  of  American  born  has  somewhat  more 
than  offset  the  number  who  have  left  the  country 
or  died.^  The  development,  composition,  and  ter- 

* As  is  evident  from  the  data  presented  in  this  chapter,  the  writer 
has  been  imable  to  obtain  any  evidence  in  support  of  the  statement 
made  (Hearings  of  House  Committee  on  Immigration,  February  13, 
1914,  p.  48)  by  the  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration  that 
the  number  of  Japanese  in  the  United  States  had  doubled  in  the 
last  six  or  seven  years.  The  population  estimates  given  in  the 
Japanese- American  Yearbook,  which  in  different  localities  have 
been  found  to  be  fairly  accurate,  but  to  exaggerate  somewhat, 
have  been  as  follows : 

1910  . . . 91,958 

1911  . . . 93,358 

1913  • • • 95,483 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


ritorial  distribution  of  this  population  should  be 
described  first  of  all,  for  much  of  importance  relat- 
ing to  the  Japanese  problem  is  contained  in  the 
details  thus  brought  out. 

Early  Immigration.  — The  early  history  of  J apa- 
nese  immigration  to  the  United  States  is  neither 
clear  nor  important.^  From  1638  to  1868,  when 
the  present  Imperial  Government  was  organized, 
emigration  from  Japan  was  prohibited.  It  was  not 
definitely  legalized  until  1885.  But  while  emigra- 
tion was  still  forbidden,  a few  Japanese  sailors 
and  students  reached  our  shores.  Moreover,  in 
the  Sacramento  Union  and  other  California  papers 
for  1869  we  read  of  a colony  of  a few  score  of 
Japanese  settled  as  prospective  silk  growers  at 
Gold  Hill,  California,  where  they  were  received 
with  great  favor.  The  promoter  of  this  colony 
expected  more  to  follow,  but  evidently  this  expec- 
tation was  not  realized  because  of  the  failure 
of  the  project.  In  the  report  of  the  United 
States  Treasury  Department  for  1893,  it  was 
stated  that  between  1861  and  1870,  218  Jap- 
anese had  immigrated  to  this  country.  The 
Census  of  1870,  however,  reported  only  55 
Japanese  as  residing  in  the  United  States.  The 
corresponding  number  reported  in  1880  was  148, 

Checking  over  the  reports  of  the  Japanese  associations,  entries  and 
departures,  the  Immigration  Commission  arrived  at  an  estimate 
of  from  95,000  to  100,000  for  1909.  The  Japanese- American’s 
estimate  was  98,715. 

^ Some  of  the  details  relating  to  the  early  immigration  of  Japa- 
nese have  been  presented  by  Y.  Ichihashi  in  Japanese  Immigration: 
Its  Status  in  California. 


2 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

in  1890,  2,039,  These  2,039  Japanese  reported 
as  residing  in  the  United  States  in  1890  is  evidence 
of  the  larger  number  of  immigrants  to  this  country- 
following  upon  the  legalization  of  emigration  by 
Japan  in  1885,  and  the  enactment  of  the  Chinese 
exclusion  law  in  1882,  which,  before  1890,  had 
begun  to  effect  a decrease  in  the  number  of  Mon- 
golian laborers,  to  cause  a dearth  of  farm  hands, 
and  to  cause  a rise  in  the  wages  of  common  laborers 
in  California.  The  Immigration  Commission  pre- 
sented the  following  table  based  upon  the  reports 
of  the  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration,  to 
show  the  immigration  of  Japanese,  except  from 
our  insular  possessions,  beginning  with  the  fiscal 
year  1892-93:^ 


Year  Ending  June  30 — 

Number 

Year  Ending  June  30 — 

Number 

1893 

1,380 

1902 

5,325 

1894 

1,931 

1903 

6,990 

1895 

1,150 

1904 

7,771 

1896 

I, no 

1905 

4,319 

1897 

1,526 

1906 

5,178 

1898 

2,230 

1907 

9,948 

1899 

3,395 

1908 

7,250 

1900 

12,626 

1909 

1,593 

1901 

4,908 

1910 

1,552 

Increase  in  Immigration  after  1898.  — From  this 
table  it  is  seen  that  numbers  grew  slowly.  Not  as 
many  as  two  thousand  Japanese  arrived  in  any 
one  year  until  1898.  In  1900,  12,626  were  ad- 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  5. 

3 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  ST..TES 

mitted,  but  this  unusual  number  is  explained  largely 
by  the  diversion  of  Japanese  from  Honolulu  to  the 
Pacific  ports.  At  no  time  since  has  the  direct 
immigration  from  Japan  been  so  large.  During  the 
six  years  1901  to  1906,  the  total  number  immigrat- 
ing directly  was  34,491.  For  some  years,  however, 
this  direct  immigration  was  greatly  augmented  by 
an  unfortunate  indirect  immigration  by  way  of  the 
Hawaiian  Islands.  A large  number  of  Japanese, 
who  had  gone  there  to  work  on  the  sugar  plantations, 
came  to  the  mainland  seeking  higher  wages  or  better 
opportunities  to  establish  their  independence  of 
the  wage  relation,  than  were  offered  in  the  Islands. 
Still  others,  when  the  Japanese  government  dis- 
couraged emigration  to  the  continental  United 
States,  emigrated  to  Hawaii  as  a stepping-stone  to 
the  Pacific  Coast.  Thus  as  against  39,531  ad- 
mitted directly  from  Japan  during  the  years  1902 
to  1907,  some  32,855  are  reported^  to  have  sailed 
from  Honolulu  for  [the  mainland.^  Since  1907 
great  restrictions  have  been  placed  upon  direct 
immigration  from  Japan,  while  immigration  in- 
directly from  our  insular  possessions  and  our  neigh- 


1 The  number  of  Japanese  leaving  Honolulu  for  the  Orient  and  for 
the  Pacific  Coast  are  reported  by  the  Territorial  Board  of  Immigra- 
tion and  the  United  States  Commissioner  of  Labor  (in  Bulletins  66 
and  94).  The  total  number  reported  as  going  to  the  Pacific  Coast 
was  35,634,  but  2,779  of  these,  in  1907-08,  immigrated  to  Canada. 
See  Report  of  W.  L.  MacKenzie  King,  Royal  Commissioner  appointed 
to  inquire  into  the  methods  by  which  Orientals  have  been  induced  to 
come  to  Canada.  The  more  important  parts  of  this  report  are  found 
quoted  in  Reports  of  the  U.  S.  Immigration  Commission,  Vol.  40, 
pp.  66-71.  With  reference  to  this  movement,  see,  also.  Reports  of 
Immigration  Commission,  Vol.  23,  p.  6. 

4 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

boring  countries  has  been  prohibited.  The  history 
of  this  most  recent  period  may,  however,  be  re- 
viewed to  better  advantage  presently. 

Character  of  the  Immigration.  — Most  of  the 
Japanese  who  came  directly  to  this  country  were 
young  men.  They  came  seeking  opportunities  to 
study,  or  better  opportunities  to  gain  a livelihood 
than  were  in  prospect  at  home.  They  were  of 
course  drawn  largely  from  the  most  intelligent  and 
ambitious  of  the  middle  class.  Along  with  these 
young  men  came  a smaller  number  of  older  men 
who  had  failed  in  business  or  had  found  farming  or 
wage  labor  in  Japan  unattractive.  A third  ele- 
ment came  from  Hawaii,  where  a large  percentage 
of  the  total  number  had  been  drawn  from  the  poorest 
and  most  ignorant  class.  Many  of  the  most  ambi- 
tious of  these,  dissatisfied  with  their  lot  as  poorly 
paid  plantation  laborers,  availed  themselves  of  the 
opportunity  to  come  to  the  mainland.  From 
Mexico  came  some  corresponding  closely  to  the 
classes  arriving  from  Hawaii,  from  Canada  a few 
like  those  immigrating  from  Japan, 

Age  of  Immigrants.  — Combining  11,585  of  these 
diverse  elements,  the  Immigration  Commission  found 
that  almost  twenty- three  in  each  hundred  (22.6  per 
cent)  had  come  to  the  United  States  when  under 
twenty  years  of  age,  and  that  more  than  one  half 
(53.2  per  cent)  had  come  when  under  twenty-five. 
On  the  other  hand,  only  about  twenty-five  in  each  100 
(24.7  per  cent)  were  thirty  or  upward,  and  less  than 
five  in  each  one  hundred  (4.^  per  cent)  forty  or  over.’^ 


^ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  pp.  7-8, 

5 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Occupations  in  Japan.  — Perhaps  three  fifths, 
or  even  more,  of  these  immigrants  were  of  the 
agricultural  class.  Those  from  the  cities  were  in  a 
decided  minority.  This  is  shown  by  the  occupa- 
tions of  Japanese  aliens  arrived  at  the  ports  of  the 
United  States  (including  Hawaii)  and  Canada,  as 
reported  by  the  Commissioner  General  of  Immigra- 
tion. The  Immigration  Commission  presented 
the  data  bearing  upon  the  matter  in  the  following 
table ; ^ 


Year 

Total  Number 

Professional 

Merchants,  Gro- 
Icers,  and  Bankers 

Farmers 

Farm  Laborers 

1 Skilled  Laborers 

i 

Laborers 

Personal  and 

Domestic  Service 

Other  Occupa- 

tions 

Without  Occu- 

pation 

1901 

5,249 

167 

660 

897 

1,153 

603 

830 

181 

173 

585 

1902 

14,455 

222 

1,21 1 

5,212 

451 

1,047 

1,558 

173 

193 

4,388 

1903 

20,041 

274 

1,445 

5,010 

5,816 

922 

572 

132 

588 

5,282 

1904 

14,382 

372 

1,189 

I2I 

6,775 

641 

1,474 

317 

248 

3,244 

1905 

11,021 

280 

791 

380 

5,883 

358 

743 

207 

167 

2,212 

1906 

14,243 

256 

649 

522 

8,435 

329 

835 

195 

567 

2,446 

1907 

30,824 

610 

783 

817 

20,636 

546 

1,334 

166 

2,174 

3,855 

1908 

16,418 

378 

687 

378 

6,766 

457 

1,144 

284 

1,742 

4,582 

1909 

3,275 

139 

108 

15 

628 

85 

200 

67 

268 

1,765 

Total 

129,908 

2,699 

7,523 

13,352 

56,543 

4,988 

8,690 

1,722 

6,129 

28,359 

Per- 

cent- 

age 

100 

2.1 

5-8 

10.3 

43-5 

3-8 

6.7 

1-3 

4-7 

21.8 

In  the  report  of  the  Commission  this  table  is 
commented  upon  as  follows  : 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  8. 

6 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

“ Thus,  according  to  these  data,  10.3  per  cent 
of  the  immigrants  for  the  nine  years  had  been 
farmers  in  Japan,  while  43.5  per  cent  had  been 
‘farm  laborers’  most  of  whom  were  youths  or 
young  men  working  on  their  fathers’  farms  with- 
out wages,  for  farm  laborers  working  regularly 
for  wages  have  been  relatively  few.  Moreover, 

21.8  per  cent,  including  women  and  children,  had 
not  been  gainfully  occupied.  A large  percentage 
of  these  were  the  wives  and  small  children  of 
farmers  and  farm  laborers  and  should  be  added 
to  the  percentages  given  above  in  order  to  obtain 
an  estimate  of  the  relative  number  of  the  farming 
class  emigrating  from  Japan.  As  opposed  to  the 

53.8  per  cent  who  had  been  gainfully  employed  in 
agricultural  pursuits,  2.1  per  cent  were  professional 
men  (physicians,  teachers,  preachers,  actors,  etc.), 

5.8  per  cent  were  merchants,  grocers,  and  bankers, 

3.8  per  cent  skilled  laborers  in  a great  variety  of 
trades,  6.7  per  cent  common  laborers,  1.3  per  cent 
had  been  occupied  in  the  various  branches  of  do- 
mestic and  personal  service,  and  4.7  per  cent  in 
other  occupations  of  which  fishing  was  no  doubt 
one  of  the  more  important.  Thus,  the  majority 
of  the  Japanese  immigrants  have  been  drawn 
from  the  rural  sections  of  the  country.  Yet  many 
classes  have  found  large  representation  among 
those  who  have  come  to  the  United  States.” 

Reasons  for  Immigration.  ~ The  reasons  for 
Japanese  immigration  to  the  United  States  should 
be  considered  in  close  connection  with  the  facts 
just  presented. 


7 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

While  it  is  true  that  the  “ student  ” element 
among  the  Japanese  has  been  a conspicuous  one, 
the  primary  motive  for  emigration  with  this  as 
well  as  with  most  other  races,  has  always  been 
economic.  Japanese  have  not  left  their  home  land 
to  avoid  religious  or  political  persecution. 

Lack  of  opportunity  in  Japan.  — Economic  op- 
portunity in  Japan  has  been  limited  as  compared 
to  that  in  the  United  States.^  Japan  is  a country 
with  a dense  and  rapidly  increasing  population,  with 
limited  natural  resources  and  a scarcity  of  capital. 
Not  far  from  three  fifths  of  the  population  gainfully 
occupied  are  engaged  in  tilling  small  plots  of  land, 
frequently  as  tenants  paying  high  rents,  or  in  agricul- 
tural labor  at  wages  very  low  as  compared  to  those 
earned  in  unskilled  labor  in  this  country.  The 
more  ambitious  have  tended  strongly  to  leave  the 
rural  communities  to  seek  better  opportunities  in 
the  cities  or  in  other  countries.  In  the  cities, 
however,  in  spite  of  long  hours  of  labor,  wages  are 
still  low.  Consequently  emigration  has  appealed 
to  many  of  the  more  ambitious  as  the  solution  of  their 
problem  of  limited  opportunity.  The  western  part 
of  the  United  States  has  naturally  appealed  to  them 
most  strongly  as  the  land  of  opportunity. 

Emigration  Cumulative.  — Emigration  is  likely 
to  prove  cumulative.  So  was  it  in  the  case  of  the 
Japanese,  for  one  reason  because  of  the  widespread 
advertising  of  the  advantages  to  be  had  by  emigrat- 

1 With  reference  to  the  things  here  briefly  stated,  see  Immigration 
Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  pp.  9-13,  for  statistical  and  other 
detail. 


8 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

ing  to  the  United  States.  Of  more  importance 
than  this,  however,  was  the  fact  that  the  emigra- 
tion business  became  an  organized  one.  Emigration 
companies  were  organized  in  increasing  number  to 
handle  the  business,  while  on  this  side  contractors, 
supply  companies,  and  boarding  houses  made  the 
way  easy  and  readily  secured  employment  for  those 
who  came.  The  wonder  is  that  more  did  not  immi- 
grate to  the  United  States.  That  more  did  not  is 
explained  partly  by  the  action  of  the  Japanese 
government  in  discouraging  direct  emigration  to 
this  country. 

Immigration  from  Hawaii.  — This  relates  partic- 
ularly to  the  voluntary  movement  directly  from 
Japan  to  the  United  States  previous  to  1907.  As 
has  been  indicated,  however,  a large  part  of  the 
immigration  for  some  years  was  of  Japanese  who  had 
become  dissatisfied  with  their  lot  in  the  Hawaiian 
Islands,  where  by  1900,  partly  as  a result  of  the 
importation  of  contract  laborers,  partly  as  a result 
of  voluntary  immigration  of  laborers  to  work  on  the 
sugar  plantations,  they  numbered  61,111  in  a total 
population  of  154,001.  Not  only  did  many,  with 
good  reason,  become  dissatisfied  with  plantation 
conditions ; many  after  the  annexation  of  the 
Islands  went  there  as  a stepping-stone  to  the  main- 
land because  as  early  as  1900  the  Japanese  govern- 
ment had  begun  to  discourage  emigration  to  the 
continental  United  States.  Nor  was  the  remigra- 
tion of  these  laborers  entirely  normal  and  uninduced. 
As  the  report  of  the  Immigration  Commission 
succinctly  puts  it: 


9 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

“ With  the  strong  demand  for  labor  prevailing 
in  the  West  the  Japanese  contractors  on  the 
Coast,  and  especially  those  doing  business  in  San 
Francisco  and  Seattle,  induced  many  to  come  to 
the  United  States.  Some  of  these  contractors  were 
for  a time  regularly  represented  by  agents  sent  to 
Honolulu,  recourse  was  made  to  advertising  in  the 
Japanese  papers  published  there,  cheap  rates  were 
secured,  and  in  some  instances  assistance  was  given 
in  other  ways  to  those  desiring  to  reach  the  main- 
land.”' 

Immigration  through  Canada  and  Mexico.  — It 

must  be  pointed  out,  also,  that  the  movement  thus 
far  dealt  with  was  accompanied  by  a considerable 
unrecorded  immigration  of  Japanese  across  the 
Canadian  and  Mexican  boundaries.  While  the 
number  thus  coming  from  Canada  would  appear 
not  to  have  been  large,  that  coming  across  the 
Mexican  boundary  was  sufficient  to  give  rise  to 
discussion  by  Inspector  Braun,  who  was  detailed 
in  1906  and  1907  by  the  Bureau  of  Immigration  to 
investigate  the  influx  of  immigrants  of  different 
races  from  or  through  Mexico. 

” With  reference  to  the  Japanese  he  reported 
that  within  two  years  more  than  10,000  had 
been  imported  into  Mexico  as  contract  laborers, 
being  sent  out  by  the  various  emigration  com- 
panies, but  that  most  of  them  had  left  their 
employment,  and  that  the  entire  number  in 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  14.  See  also 
report  by  King  as  Royal  Commissioner,  cited  above,  and  Third 
Report  of  the  Commissioner  of  Labor  on  Hawaii. 

10 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  Republic  at  that  time  (June,  1907)  was  only 
about  1,000.  Inasmuch  as  they  had  not  left  the 
country  through  the  ports,  it  was  concluded  that 
they  had  immigrated  to  the  United  States,  lawfully 
previous  to  the  issue  of  the  President’s  order  of 
March  14,  1907,  surreptitiously  ever  since.”  ^ 

Thus  dissatisfaction  with  conditions  in  Mexico 
and  the  discouragement  of  emigration  to  the  United 
States  gave  rise  to  a movement  into  and  out  of 
Mexico  — across  our  boundary  — much  smaller 
but  not  unlike  that  from  the  Hawaiian  Islands. 

Officially  Immigration  of  Laborers  ended  in  1907. 
— Officially  the  immigration  of  those  occupied  as 
laborers  in  Japan  came  practically  to  an  end  in  1907, 
when  the  President  issued  an  order  refusing  ad- 
mission to  “ Japanese  and  Korean  laborers,  skilled 
or  unskilled,  who  have  received  passports  to  go  to 
Mexico,  Canada,  or  Hawaii,  and  come  therefrom,” 
and,  under  pressure,  the  Japanese  government 
agreed  to  discontinue  the  issuing  of  passports  to 
certain  classes  of  its  subjects  who  might  desire  to 
emigrate  to  the  continental  United  States.  This 
order  and  the  agreement  developed  out  of  very 
strained  relations  incidental  to  continued  opposi- 
tion to  and  discrimination  against  the  Japanese,  espe- 
cially in  California. 

Opposition  to  Immigration.  — The  first  strong 
note  of  opposition  to  the  immigration  of  Japanese 
laborers  came  from  a mass  meeting  held  at  San 
Francisco  in  1900,  to  consider  the  reenactment  of 

* Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  15. 

II 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  Chinese  exclusion  law,  soon  to  expire  by  reason 
of  limitation  to  a period  of  years.  Before  this, 
however,  there  had  been  some  evidence  of  dis- 
satisfaction with  the  existing  situation.  The  State 
Labor  Commissioner  had  recently  made  an  investi- 
gation of  the  employment  of  Japanese  in  California, 
and  in  this  connection  adverse  criticisms,  such  as 
had  been  made  of  the  Chinese,  were  made  of  the 
new  race.  Moreover,  Mr.  Rice  had  been  detailed 
by  the  Immigration  Bureau  to  investigate  charges  of 
violations  of  the  contract  labor  law  in  connection  with 
Japanese  immigration.  His  report^  described  the 
connection  between  the  emigration  companies  and 
the  increasing  number  of  immigrants.  It  also  stated 
as  a fact  that  twelve  of  these  companies  at  that  time 
had  their  representatives  in  the  United  States. 

“It  was  in  1900,  when  an  unusually  large  num- 
ber arrived,  however,  that  the  first  organized  de- 
mand was  made  for  the  exclusion  of  the  Japanese. 
At  a mass  meeting  called  in  San  Francisco,  May  7 
of  that  year,  not  only  was  a resolution  adopted  urg- 
ing Congress  to  reenact  the  Chinese  exclusion  law, 
but  it  was  further  resolved  to  urge  the  adoption  of  an 
act  of  Congress  or  such  other  measures  as  might  be 
necessary  for  the  total  exclusion  of  all  classes  of  Jap- 
anese other  than  members  of  the  diplomatic  staff.”  ^ 

Following  this  came  the  first  of  the  anti- Japa- 
nese messages  emanating  from  the  governor’s  office 
at  Sacramento  and  resolutions  from  the  state 
legislature  calling  upon  Congress  to  extend  the 

* See  House  Doc.  No.  686,  56th  Congress,  ist  Session. 

^ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  167. 

12 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Chinese  exclusion  law  to  other  Asiatics.  Yet  little 
interest  in  the  matter  was  taken  by  the  people  at 
large  in  California  until  the  San  Francisco  Chroni- 
cle — for  what  reasons  need  not  trouble  us  here  — 
conducted  a very  successful  campaign  against  the 
Japanese.  This  was  in  the  spring  of  1905  when  a 
large  number  were  coming  to  the  mainland  from 
Honolulu  and  greatly  augmenting  the  number  of 
arrivals.  The  enlarged  stream  emptied  itself  in  San 
Francisco,  where  it  was  made  conspicuously  evi- 
dent by  all  the  circumstances  connected  with  disem- 
barkation, boarding  and  lodging,  and  subsequent 
employment.  Organization  of  the  Asiatic  Exclusion 
League  followed  in  May,  this  being,  in  a sense,  ready 
made  of  the  trade  unions  which  had  always  been  in 
the  thick  of  the  fight  against  Chinese  immigration. 

The  San  Francisco  School  Order.  — It  happened 
that  the  same  elements  at  this  time  dominated  in 
the  Exclusion  League  and  the  municipal  govern- 
ment of  San  Francisco.  On  May  6,  1905,  the  Board 
of  Education  passed  a resolution  declaring  its  deter- 
mination to  effect  the  establishment  of  separate 
schools  for  Chinese  and  Japanese  pupils,  but  no 
further  action  was  taken  until  after  the  great  fire  of 
the  following  year,  when  a “ separate  school  order  ” 
was  passed.^  This  required  the  transfer  of  most  of 

1 The  need  for  this  action  was,  as  so  often  happens,  popularly 
over-estimated.  The  total  number  of  Japanese  children  in  the 
twenty-three  schools  of  the  city  was  only  ninety-three ; of  whom 
nine  were  sixteen  years  old,  twelve  were  seventeen,  six  were 
eighteen,  four  were  nineteen,  and  two  were  twenty.  The  remainder 
were  all  under  sixteen  years  of  age.  C/.  Secretary  Metcalf’s  report 
to  President  Wilson. 


13 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  Japanese  pupils  who  had  enrolled  in  a number  of 
public  schools  as  a result  of  the  scattering  of  the 
population  by  the  fire,  to  the  Oriental  School, 
located  in  the  center  of  the  city,  far  removed  from 
the  homes  of  most  of  the  pupils  and  almost  inaccessi- 
ble under  the  circumstances.  The  promulgation 
of  this  order  at  this  time  was  no  doubt  connected 
with  the  fact  that,  partly  for  reasons  other  than  the 
activity  of  the  Exclusion  League,  a strong  opposi- 
tion to  the  Japanese  had  grown  up.  They  had 
come  to  occupy  a conspicuous  position  in  some,  of 
the  petty  businesses  of  the  city,  and  especially  in 
the  restaurant  trade.  At  just  this  time  these 
restaurants  were  being  boycotted  by  the  Cooks’  and 
Waiters’  Union  and  incidental  to  the  prosecution  of 
the  boycott  not  a little  violence  was  being  practiced. 

School  Question  becomes  an  International  Issue. 
— Against  this  state  of  affairs  the  Japanese  pro- 
tested strongly,  and,  as  usual,  to  the  Japanese 
government.  The  “ school  question  ” became  an 
international  issue.  An  investigation  by  the  federal 
government  and  a conference  between  President 
Roosevelt  and  local  officials  of  San  Francisco  fol- 
lowed. By  force  of  circumstances  the  Japanese 
government  agreed  to  restrict  the  issuing  of  pass- 
ports to  laborers  who  wished  to  emigrate,  and  an 
immigration  bill,  then  in  conference  committee, 
was  changed  so  as  to  authorize  the  President  to 
suspend  the  immigration  of  Japanese  and  Korean 
laborers  from  our  insular  possessions  and  from 
Canada  and  Mexico.  This  authority  was  employed 
by  the  President  in  his  famous  order  of  March  14, 

14 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

1907,  refusing  admission  to  the  continental  United 
States  to  “ Japanese  or  Korean  laborers,  skilled  or 
unskilled,  who  have  received  passports  to  go  to 
Mexico,  Canada,  or  Hawaii  and  come  therefrom.” 

The  Agreement  with  Japan.  — The  agreement 
with  Japan,  in  effect  since  1907,  contemplates 
“that  the  Japanese  government  shall  issue  pass- 
ports to  the  continental  United  States  only  to  such 
of  its  subjects  as  are  non-laborers  or  are  laborers 
who,  in  coming  to  the  continent,  seek  to  resume  a 
formerly  acquired  domicile,  to  join  a parent,  wife, 
or  children  residing  here,  or  to  assume  active  control 
of  an  already  possessed  interest  in  a farming  enter- 
prise in  this  country.”  Accordingly  the  classes  of 
laborers  entitled  to  receive  passports  have  come  to 
be  designated  “former  residents,”  “parents,  wives, 
or  children  of  residents,”  and  “ settled  agricultu- 
rists.”^ After  the  promulgation  of  the  President’s 
order  of  March  14,  1907,  the  provisions  of  this 
agreement  were  applied  in  the  granting  of  passports 
to  Hawaii  as  well  as  to  the  mainland. 

The  Japanese  Government  has  acted  in  Good 
Faith. — Though  slow  progress  was  made  in  carry- 
ing this  agreement  into  effect  and  “ the  system  did 
not  begin  to  work  smoothly  in  all  its  details  until 
the  last  month  of  the  fiscal  year,”  ^ 1907-08,  the 
agreement  has  given  and  still  gives  an  effective 
method  of  restricting  the  immigration  of  Japanese 
and  Korean  laborers  to  the  United  States.  The 

* Annual  Report  of  the  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration  for 
the  fiscal  year  ended  June  30,  1908,  pp.  125-126. 

^ Report  of  the  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration,  1908,  p.  126. 

15 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

good  faith  of  the  Japanese  government  in  the  grant- 
ing of  passports  cannot  be  reasonably  questioned. 
Indeed,  its  administration  has  been  rather  severe 
in  its  details.  Students  find  great  difficulty  in 
securing  passports  and  must  establish  their  ability 
to  pay  their  way  through  college  without  manual 
labor,  before  their  applications  are  favorably  acted 
upon.  Moreover,  the  Japanese  government  has 
placed  great  restrictions  upon  emigration  to  Mexico 
and  Canada.  These  restrictions  had  as  one  motive 
the  fear  that  these  countries  might  be  used  as 
stepping-stones  to  the  United  States.  In  this  way 
the  “ problem  of  the  border  ” has  been  reduced  to 
small  proportions  as  compared  to  those  which 
would  have  obtained  in  the  absence  of  cooperation 
on  the  part  of  the  Japanese  government.^ 

The  Agreement  Effective.  — When  employed  by 
the  recent  Immigration  Commission,  the  writer 
caused  the  investigation  of  Japanese  immigrants 
to  take  such  form  as  to  secure  evidence  bearing 
upon  the  observance  of  the  agreement.  No  facts 
indicating  anything  other  than  its  faithful  observ- 
ance were  obtained.  The  results  of  the  investiga- 
tion conducted  by  the  California  Commissioner  of 
Labor,  Mr.  MacKenzie,  were  the  same.  Though 
it  may  be  that  the  will  of  the  two  governments  is 
sometimes  thwarted,  as  a restrictive  measure,  the 

1 The  number  of  passports  issued  by  the  Japanese  government  to 
its  subjects  wishing  to  emigrate  to  Mexico  have  been  as  follows : 

1907  3945  1909  13  1911  60  1913  106 

1908  18  1910  37  1912  74 

The  number  of  Japanese  admitted  into  Canada  in  recent  years  have 
been  as  follows : 1911,727;  1912,675;  1913,886. 

16 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 


agreement  has  been  very  successful.^  More  than 
once  have  those  in  charge  of  the  administration  of 
the  immigration  laws  commented  upon  the  greater 
effectiveness  of  the  regulations  relating  to  the 
admission  of  Japanese  than  of  the  Chinese  exclu- 
sion law.^ 

1 Thus  the  Commissioner  of  Immigration,  Seattle,  in  charge  of 
district  No.  i6,  comprising  the  state  of  Washington,  in  his  report 
for  1913,  writes  of  deserting  seamen  as  follows  (Report  of  Commis- 
sioner General  of  Immigration,  1913,  p.  228) : “Aside  from  Japanese 
laborers,  I do  not  believe  that  there  are  many  aliens  of  the  inadmis- 
sible classes  accomplishing  entry  through  this  district  under  the  guise 
of  seamen.  Approximately  27  per  cent  of  the  alien  seamen  who  left 
their  ships  in  this  district  during  the  past  fiscal  year  were  Japanese, 
and  I have  no  doubt  that  the  greater  part,  if  not  all  of  them,  deserted 
with  the  intention  of  remaining  in  the  United  States  rather  than  re- 
shipping in  the  course  of  their  pursuit,  as  is  the  custom  of  seamen  of 
other  races.” 

Though  there  has  been  some  complaint  of  unlawful  entries  across 
the  Mexican  border,  the  supervising  inspector  in  1913  reported  that 
“immigration  of  Japanese  through  this  district  has  been  practically 
negligible.”  According  to  Mr.  O’Donnell  (Hearings  House  Com- 
mittee on  Immigration,  February,  1914,  p.  178),  however,  96  Japanese 
entering  the  United  States  unlawfully  across  the  Mexican  border 
were  apprehended. 

^ The  following  favorable  comment  may  be  quoted  from  the  report 
of  the  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration  for  the  year  1909-10, 
p.  299:  “With  the  lapse  of  additional  time,  the  effectiveness 
attending  the  regulation  of  Japanese  immigration  by  agreement 
between  the  two  countries  interested  becomes  more  forcibly  demon- 
strated. Japanese  applications  for  admission  to  Mexican  border 
ports  are  now  confined  almost  wholly  to  transits,  bona  fide  residents 
of  Mexico,  or  domiciled  residents  of  the  United  States  returning, 
and  the  few  surreptitious  entries  represent  merely  the  straggling  rear 
guard  of  the  Japanese  immigrants  who  entered  Mexico  in  much 
larger  numbers  three  or  four  years  ago.  The  easy  effectiveness 
with  which  the  Japanese  coolie  labor  problem  has  been  met  throws 
into  still  sharper  contrast  the  cumbersome,  ineffective  Chinese 
exclusion  law  with  which  our  officers  are  daily  struggling  in  an  effort 
to  secure  a satisfactory  enforcement.” 

17 


c 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Immigration  since  the  Agreement  became  Ef- 
fective. — These  various  measures  taken  to  con- 
trol immigration  to  the  continental  United  States 
have  sharply  set  off  the  immigration  of  the  last 
six  years  from  that  of  the  period  ending  with  1907. 
The  departures  of  Japanese  males  have  exceeded 
the  number  recorded  as  admitted.  The  figures 
(for  both  males  and  females)  presented  in  the  reports 
of  the  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration  are  as 
follows : 


Year 

Number  of  Japanese 
Admitted 

Number  or  Japanese 
Departed 

1908 

9-544 

4,796 

1909 

2,432 

5,004 

1910 

2,598 

5-024 

I9II 

4,282 

5,869 

1912 

5,358 

5,437 

1913 

6,771 

5,647 

Totals  1908-13 

30,985 

31,777 

Effect  on  Labor  Supply.  — The  effect  of  these 
measures  upon  the  supply  of  migratory  labor  has 
been  much  greater  than  might  be  inferred  from  these 
figures,  for,  as  we  shall  see,  women  have  constituted 
a large  percentage  of  those  admitted  to  but  a small 
percentage  of  those  leaving  the  country,  and  the 
unskilled  have  been  represented  in  smaller  propor- 
tions. 

Occupations  of  Immigrants  and  of  those  returning 
to  Japan.  — The  occupations  of  Japanese  admitted 
and  of  those  who  departed  from  the  United  States 

18 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 


in  1912-13  are  recorded  by  the  immigration  officers 
as  follows : ^ 


OccupAnoN 

Number  Admitted 

Number  Departed 

Professional 

309 

259 

Skilled 

301 

357 

Miscellaneous ; 

Farm  laborers 

472 

227 

Farmers 

927 

1,886 

Laborers 

542 

I,2II 

Merchants  and  dealers 

483 

492 

Others 

I >053 

661 

No  occupation 

(chiefly  women  and  children) 

2,684 

554 

Grand  totals 

6,771 

5,647 

The  number  of  Japanese  admitted  to  the  con- 
tinental United  States  in  1912-13  was  6,771.  Of 
these  2,684,  — most  of  them  women  and  children,  — 
or  39.6  per  cent,  had  had  no  occupation  ; 309,  or  4.6 
per  cent,  were  professional  men;  301,  or  4.4  per 
cent,  were  skilled  laborers;  3,477,  or  51.4  per  cent, 
had  engaged  in  various  other  occupations.  More 
than  one  half  of  the  miscellaneous  class,  it  will  be 
noted,  were  farmers  (927),  farm  laborers  (472), 
laborers  (542),  and  servants  (82),  the  four  groups 
accounting  for  a total  of  2,023.  The  great  majority 
of  these,  hpwever,  were  former  residents  returning 
to  this  country,  for  1,175  laborers  and  1,659  non- 
laborers admitted  were  merely  returning  to  thf 
United  States.  In  fact,  only  232  laborers  who  were 
not  classed  as  former  residents,  were  admitted  at 
1 Report,  1912-13,  p.  137. 

19 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


the  ports  in  1 912-13.  Of  these  178  were  parents, 
wives,  or  children  of  residents,  41  were  admitted 
bearing  passports  to  which  they  were  not,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  immigration  officers,  entitled,  while 
13  were  admitted  without  proper  passports.^ 

Many  Women  find  Place  in  the  Labor  Supply.  — 
Thus  the  laborers  who  formerly  were  admitted  in 
comparatively  large  numbers  directly  from  Japan, 
or  indirectly  through  Hawaii  and  Mexico,  have 
under  the  agreement  been  admitted  at  the  ports 
only  in  insignificant  numbers.  But  how  many  of 
those  who  came  under  the  agreement  became 
laborers  in  this  country,  of  course,  no  one  can  say. 
It  is  true,  however,  that  the  great  majority  of  the 
wives  of  farmers,  barbers,  and  small  shopkeepers 
take  a more  or  less  regular  place  in  the  fields  or 
shops  of  their  husbands,  while  a smaller  number 
accept  places  in  domestic  service,  or  in  laundries  or 
other  places  of  employment.  Thus  a large  per- 
centage of  those  admitted  find  a place  in  the  “ labor 
supply.”  ^ 

1 Report  of  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration,  19 12-13,  pp. 

138-139- 

2 The  Commissioner  General  of  Immigration,  as  weU  as  the  dis- 
banded Exclusion  League,  has  complained  of  this.  The  Commis- 
sioner in  commenting  in  his  report  for  1912-13  (pp.  21-22)  on 
the  large  percentage  of  women  and  especially  “proxy  brides” 
among  the  Japanese  immigrants,  writes ; 

“Many  of  these  were  what  are  known  as  ‘proxy’  or  ‘photo- 
graph” brides,  i.e.  women  who  have  been  married,  under  a custom 
existing  and  recognized  as  legal  in  Japan,  to  men  living  in  this 
country  whom  in  many  instances  they  have  never  seen,  the  mar- 
riage being  arranged  between  the  heads  of  the  families  of  the  bride 
and  bridegroom.  Of  the  aliens  treated  in  hospitals  for  dangerous 
contagious  diseases,  mentioned  under  a previous  heading  of  this 

20 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 


Total  Japanese  Population  changing  very  Slowly. 

— In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  number  of  Japanese 
men  departing  from  the  United  States  exceeds  the 
number  admitted,  the  total  Japanese  population  is 
changing  very  slowly  and  the  number  admitted  still 
numbers  several  thousand  per  year  and  recently  has 
shown  a tendency  to  increase.  We  are  experienc- 
ing with  the  Japanese  what  we  have  experienced 
with  immigrants  from  most  European  countries. 
A very  considerable  percentage  of  them  have  estab- 

report  (p.  7),  681  were  Japanese  females,  the  majority  of  whom 
were  ‘proxy’  or  ‘photograph’  brides.  Passports  are  given  these 
women  on  the  ground  that  they  are  coming  to  continental  United 
States  to  join  a husband,  the  arrangement  with  Japan  contemplating 
that  where  a Japanese  laborer  is  migrating  for  the  purpose  of  joining 
a member  of  his  immediate  family  the  passport  may  be  issued. 
Most  of  the  women,  while  they  do  join  the  husband,  are  farm 
laborers  and  immediately  become  colaborers  with  their  husbands 
on  the  farms  where  the  latter  are  employed  or  which  they  are 
conducting.  As  these  ‘proxy’  or  ‘photograph’  marriages  would 
not,  of  course,  be  recognized  as  valid  in  any  of  the  states  of  this 
country,  the  men  to  whom  these  women  are  going  are  required  to 
meet  them  at  a seaport  and  go  through  a ceremony  of  marriage 
legal  in  the  United  States.  . . . But  the  bureau  feels  that  two 
facts  growing  out  of  this  situation  should  not  be  overlooked  by 
those  interested  in  the  economic  phases  of  the  immigration  problem  : 
(i)  The  practice  of  furnishing  the  passport  to  these  women  and 
admitting  them  on  the  basis  of  the  passport  and  a marriage  per- 
formed at  the  port  opens  the  way  for  the  introduction  into  conti- 
nental United  States  of  large  bodies  of  common  laborers  — females, 
it  is  true,  but  none  the  less  competitors  of  the  laborers  of  this  coun- 
try; and  (2)  this  practice  must  necessarily  result  in  constituting 
a large  native-born  Japanese  population  — persons  who,  because 
of  their  birth  on  American  soil,  will  be  regarded  as  American  citi- 
zens, although  their  parents  cannot  be  naturalized,  and  who,  never- 
theless, will  be  considered  (and  will  probably  consider  themselves) 
subjects  of  the  Empire  of  Japan  under  the  laws  of  that  country, 
which  holds  that  children  bom  abroad  of  parents  who  are  Japanese 
subjects  are  themselves  subjects  of  the  Japanese  Empire.” 

21 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

lished  themselves  in  this  country  and  expect  to 
remain  indefinitely  if  not  permanently.  Most  of 
those  who  were  married  before  immigrating  to  this 
country  have  either  returned  to  their  families  in 
Japan  or  have  brought  their  wives,  and  perhaps 
their  children,  to  this  country  and  established  a 
home.  Many  of  those  who  immigrated  as  single 
men  have  visited  Japan  and  returned  with  wives,  or, 
more  likely,  have  secured  “ picture  brides,”  the 
regular  marriage  ceremony  being  performed  under 
the  supervision  of  the  immigration  authorities 
upon  the  arrival  of  the  bride  in  this  country.^  The 
prominence  of  females  among  the  immigrants  in 
recent  years  is  shown  by  the  following  table  : ^ 


Year 

Japanese  Males 
Admitted 

Japanese  Females 
Admitted 

Japanese  Wives 
Admitted  (a) 

1909 

1,777  (&) 

867  (b) 

665 

1910 

1,648  (&) 

1,039  lb) 

880 

1911 

2,377 

1,905 

1,551 

1912 

2,930 

2,428 

2,092 

1913 

4,012 

2,759 

2,398 

(a)  Includes  “proxy  brides”  as  well  as  those  regularly  married 
in  Japan. 

(b)  Number  who  applied  for  admission. 

^ The  number  of  “proxy  brides”  admitted  at  Seattle  in  1912, 
was  511,  in  1913,  517  (Report  of  Commissioner  General  of  Immi- 
gration, 1 9 12-13,  p.  229).  According  to  data  supplied  by  the 
California  State  Board  of  Health,  the  number  of  marriages  of  Jap- 
anese at  San  Francisco,  in  1912,  was  867,  in  1913,  670.  Nearly  all 
of  the  women  were  “proxy  brides.” 

2 Compiled  from  the  reports  of  the  Commissioner  General  of 
Immigration. 


22 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Homes  Established.  Native-born  Japanese.  — 

Thus,  several  hundred  or  a few  thousand  females, 
most  of  them  married  women,  have  been  admitted 
to  the  United  States  each  year  during  the  last  five 
as  against  the  few  hundred  at  most  who  came  di- 
rectly from  Japan  any  year  previous  to  1908.  In 
1910  the  Census  (fairly  complete  for  that  group) 
reported  5,582  Japanese  married  women  residing 
in  the  United  States.  The  married  women  ad- 
mitted during  the  three  years  1911-13  more  than 
doubled  the  number  of  Japanese  families  in  the 
United  States,  but  with  a restricted  immigration  of 
males,  the  large  influx  of  women  will  of  course  not 
continue  indefinitely.  The  establishment  of  homes 
in  this  country  by  a large  number  of  Japanese  has 
been  a most  important  fact.  It  not  only  marks  the 
rapid  change  from  migratory  labor  to  a “ settled  ” 
occupation,  or,  more  likely,  to  a farm  or  business 
life ; it  has  vitally  changed  for  the  better  the  social 
life  of  the  Japanese.  And  along  with  it  has  come  a 
new  factor  of  importance  in  the  growth  of  the 
Japanese  population  — the  American-born  children. 
The  number  of  native-born  Japanese  reported  by 
the  Census  of  1910  was  4,413.  With  the  lapse  of 
time  and  the  increase  in  the  number  of  wives  in  the 
country,  the  number  by  the  close  of  1913  had  in- 
creased perhaps  to  between  10,000  and  11,000.^ 
With  about  two  thirds  of  the  Japanese  families, 
California  for  the  three  years  1911-13  recorded 

* The  number  of  native-born  Japanese  boys,  December,  1913, 
according  to  the  Japanese- American  Yearbook,  was  5,076 ; of  girls, 
5,016  — a total  of  10,092. 


23 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

4,677  Japanese  births.^  For  the  eight  years  1906  to 
1913,  the  number  of  births  reported  to  the  state 
board  of  health  was  6,688. 

This  summarizes  the  chief  points  relating  to  the 
building  up  of  the  Japanese  population  of  the  United 
States.  This  section  of  the  report  may  be  concluded 
with  a summary  statement  relating  to  the  present 
population,  and  its  geographical  and  occupational 
distribution. 

A Rough  Estimate  of  the  Number  of  Japanese  in 
the  United  States.  — The  Census  of  1910  enumer- 
ated 60,757  foreign-born  male,  6,986  foreign-born 
female,  and  4,413  native-born  Japanese  in  the 
United  States.  As  already  stated, ‘however,  there  is 
reason  to  believe  that  the  total  number  exceeded  the 
72,157  thus  recorded.  The  deficiency  believed  to 
be  shown  is  in  the  number  of  foreign-born  males. 
According  to  the  best  estimates  I have  been  able  to 
obtain,  the  number  of  Japanese  in  the  United  States 
at  the  close  of  the  year  1913  was  about  95,000.  Of 
this  number,  approximately  70,000  were  adult  males, 
some  13,000  or  14,000  adult  females  (most  of  them 
married),  and  about  11,000  children,  approximately 
90  per  cent  of  whom  were  native-born. 

Geographical  Distribution  of  the  Japanese.  — 
The  geographical  distribution  of  the  Japanese  and 
their  importance  as  a factor  in  the  population  of  the 
Western  states  is  shown  by  the  estimates  presented 
in  the  table  on  the  opposite  page.  Except  as  other- 
wise noted,  they  are  for  December,  1913. 

* The  figures  as  reported  to  the  state  board  of  health  were  995 
for  1911,  1,467  for  1912,  and  2,215  for  1913. 

24 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 


State 

Adult 

Male 

Japanese 

Adult 

Female 

Japanese 

Japanese 
Children 
under  16 

Total 

Japa- 

nese 

Total 

Population 

(Estimated) 

Prob- 

able 

Percent- 

age 

Japanese 
IN  Total 

Arizona  (a) 

491 

35 

17 

543 

237,000 

•23 

California  (a) 

42,089 

9,492 

8,174 

59,755 

2,615,000 

2.29 

Colorado  (a) 

3.342 

159 

150 

3,651 

902,000 

•4 

Idaho  (b,  c) 

1,117 

144 

81 

1,342 

391,000 

•34 

Montana  (e) 

1,027 

107 

62 

1,196 

296,000 

■4 

Nevada  (a) 

630 

25 

II 

666 

98,000 

.68 

New  Mexico  (a) 

508 

30 

19 

557 

380,000 

•14 

Oregon  (b) 

2,762 

503 

407 

3,672 

775,000 

•47 

Utah  (d) 

2,021  f 

89/ 

(/) 

2,110 

412,000 

•51 

Washington  (e) 

10,150 

2,724 

1,920 

14,794 

1,392,000 

1.06 

Wyoming  (b) 

1,581 

97 

63 

1,741 

167,000 

I.O 

Other  states  (a) 

5,162 

283 

207 

5.652 

Totals  of  above 

70,880 

13,688 

II, III 

95,679 

(c)  Figures  taken  from  Japanese- American  Yearbook. 

(d)  As  ascertained  by  the  Japanese  Consul  of  the  Portland  Dis- 
trict, December,  1913. 

(c)  A small  part  of  the  state  included  in  the  Seattle  district  not 
included. 

(d)  As  reported  in  the  Census  of  1910.  There  has  been  little 
change  in  the  total. 

(e)  As  reported  by  the  secretary  of  the  Japanese  Association  of  the 
Northwest,  Seattle,  1914. 

(f)  Those  under  16  not  separately  reported. 

A Large  Proportion  in  California.  — Though  the 
above  table  is  based  upon  estimates  of  both  the 
Japanese  and  total  populations  and  some  of  the 
figures  may  be  rather  wide  of  the  mark,  the  table 
does  indicate  two  things  clearly.  It  indicates  in 
the  first  place  it  is  likely  that  in  only  three  states  — 
California,  Washington,  and  Wyoming  — do  the 
Japanese  constitute  more  than  a fraction  of  one 

25 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

per  cent  of  the  total  population.  It  indicates  in  the 
second  place,  that  only  the  two  states,  California 
and  Washington,  have  any  considerable  number 
of  Japanese.  California  has  not  far  from  three 
fifths  of  those  in  the  continental  United  States, 
Washington  something  less  than  a sixth.  The 
remaining  states  have  only  a little  less  than  a 
quarter  of  the  entire  number.  This  uneven  dis- 
tribution of  the  Japanese  population  results  from 
two  facts,  viz.  that  most  of  the  Japanese  have 
entered  the  United  States  at  San  Francisco  or 
Seattle,  and  that  there  has  been  a return  move- 
ment from  the  Rocky  Mountain  states  to  the 
Coast  because  of  better  climatic  conditions  and 
better  opportunities  for  business  and  intensive 
agriculture  found  there. 

Relative  Importance  in  the  Population.  — The 

number  of  Japanese  appears  to  be  insignificant. 
Yet  in  some  localities  this  is  not  so,  for  the  members 
of  this  race,  as  new  immigrants  are  prone  to  do,  have 
colonized  to  a very  considerable  extent  so  as  to 
avail  themselves  of  their  own  institutions  and  of  the 
best  opportunities.  In  other  states  the  situation  is 
not  unlike  that  in  California,  where  the  records  of  the 
Japanese  Association  in  1910  gave  a few  counties 
and  the  larger  cities  the  larger  part  of  the  total 
of  55,000.  The  numbers  in  each  of  35  counties 
and  8 cities,  together  with  the  percentages  of 
the  total  populations  according  to  Dr.  Ichihashi, 
were  as  follows  : ^ 


' Y.  Ichihashi,  Japanese  Immigration,  p.  16. 

26 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 


County 

No. 

Per 

Cent 

County 

No. 

Pee 

Cent 

Los  Angeles 

11,500 

2.2 

Kings  . . . 

500 

3-1 

San  Francisco  . 

6,900 

1.6 

Butte  . . . 

400 

1-7 

Sacramento  . . 

6,000 

8.0 

San  Bernardino 

400 

9.0 

Alameda  . . . 

4,400 

1.8 

San  Diego  . . 

400 

0.6 

San  Joaquin  . . 

4.300 

8.0 

Yuba  . . . 

400 

4-1 

Santa  Clara  . 

3,100 

3-9 

Imperial 

360 

2.7 

Fresno  . . 

3,000 

4.0 

San  Mateo  . . 

350 

1-3 

Yolo  .... 

1,500 

9.0 

Colusa 

350 

7.0 

Contra  Costa  . 

1,000 

3-3 

San  Luis  Obispo 

300 

— 

Placer  . . 

1,000 

— _ 

Sutter  . . . 

300 

5-1 

Orange  . . 

990 

2.6 

Kem  .... 

340 

0.6 

Santa  Barbara  . 

960 

3-4 

Stanislaus 

190 

0.8 

Sonoma  . . 

880 

1.8 

Tehama  . 

200 

1-9 

Santa  Cruz  . . 

860 

— 

Merced  . . . 

150 

1.2 

Monterey  . . 

780 

— 

San  Benito  . . 

150 

— 

Tulare  . . . 

780 

2.2 

Napa  . . . 

100 

— 

Solano  . . . 

700 

2.5 

Others  . . . 

40 

— 

Ventura  . . 

670 

3-7 

Riverside 

650 

— 

Total  . . . 

55,000 

2.1 

Corresponding  figures  for  eight  California  cities 
were  as  follows ; ^ 


City 

No. 

Per 

Cent 

City 

No. 

Per 

Cent 

Los  Angeles  . . 

7.938 

2.5 

San  Jose  . . 

790 

2.6 

San  Francisco  . 

6,988 

1.6 

Alameda  . . 

692 

3-0 

Sacramento  . . 

2.452 

5-6 

Berkeley  . . 

686 

1-7 

Oakland  . . . 

1.835 

1.2 

Stockton  . . 

495 

2.1 

Uneven  Distribution  an  Important  Fact.  — Were 
it  possible  to  substitute  figures  for  still  smaller  com- 


' Ichihashi,  Japanese  Immigration,  p.  i6. 


27 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

munities,  the  uneven  distribution  could  be  more 
truthfully  and  adequately  presented.  It  is  a matter 
of  much  significance  in  connection  with  different 
phases  of  the  Japanese  problem.  In  many  places 
the  Japanese  are  not  lost  in  the  population.  More- 
over, when  dealing  with  matters  pertaining  to 
labor,  it  must  be  held  in  mind  that  most  of  the 
Japanese  are  adults  and  relatively  few  of  the  entire 
number  are  not  gainfully  occupied.  Industrially 
the  Japanese  are  a much  larger  factor  in  the  popula- 
tion than  these  figures  would  indicate.  In  some 
industries  and  occupations,  indeed,  they  are  a very 
important  factor,  for  here  again  those  employed  are 
distributed  very  unevenly  among  the  several  occu- 
pations and  branches  of  industry. 

Occupations  of  the  Japanese.  — Though  it  ob- 
served that  any  accurate  statement  concerning  the 
occupational  distribution  of  Japanese  was  impossi- 
ble because  of  the  migration  from  one  locality  and 
one  industry  to  another  during  the  year,  the  Immi- 
gration Commission,  in  1909,  estimated  the  number 
employed  in  city  trades  and  business  in  the  West  at 
from  22,000  to  26,000,  in  agriculture  as  laborers  or 
farmers,  when  largest,  at  some  38,000  or  40,000,  in 
railroad  work  at  10,000,  in  lumber  mills  at  2,200, 
in  mines  at  2,000,  in  salmon  canneries  at  3,600. 
The  number  gainfully  occupied  in  other  ways  was 
insignificant.^  Though  these  figures  are  for  the 
largest  number  during  the  year  and  overlap  some- 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  32.  Unfor- 
tunately the  Census  does  not  report  the  occupations  of  Japanese 
separately. 


28 


IMMIGRATION  OF  JAPANESE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES 


what,  they  show  fairly  accurately  the  relative  im- 
portance of  their  several  branches  of  employment 
at  that  time.  While  from  data  at  hand  it  is  im- 
possible to  give  corresponding  figures  for  the  present 
occupational  distribution  of  Japanese,  the  relative 
numbers  employed  in  lumber  mills,  fish  canneries, 
and  railroad  work,  have  diminished,  those  engaged 
in  agriculture  have  increased  considerably,  and 
those  in  city  trades  and  business  slightly.^ 

^The  estimates  made  by  the  Japanese- American  for  1913  are 
believed  to  exaggerate  the  number  in  certain  employments  and  the 
total  somewhat,  but  the  occupational  distribution  of  adult  males 


was  reported  as  follows : 

Public  officials 36 

Preachers,  priests,  teachers  ......  179 

Students . i,554 

Farmers 8,709 

Farm  laborers 22,787 

Business  men 6,227 

Employees  of  same 8,805 

Fishermen,  etc.  482 

Employees  in  American  stores i ,920 

Factory  hands 1.536 

Miners 1,550 

Railroad  laborers 4,553 

Lumber  mill  laborers  2,086 

House  workers  8,620 

Miscellaneous  and  unoccupied 2,055 


Total  71,299 


29 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS  IN  INDUS- 
TRIAL PURSUITS 

Present  Situation  differs  from  that  when  Immi- 
gration not  greatly  Restricted.  — The  occupational 
distribution  of  the  Japanese,  indicated  at  the  close 
of  the  preceding  chapter,  differs  materially  from  that 
of  the  time  when  immigration  was  at  its  height  and 
unrestricted.  So  does  almost  every  other  aspect  of 
the  situation.  If  one  would  secure  a proper  basis 
for  conclusions  as  to  the  problem  of  Japanese  im- 
migration in  its  broader  aspects,  he  must  not  only 
be  most  careful  in  the  use  and  interpretation  of 
available  statistical  data  (and  the  instances  of 
abuse  are  far  more  numerous  than  those  of  proper 
use  by  those  who  oppose  as  well  as  those  who  defend 
the  Japanese),  but  be  careful  also  to  consider  what 
was  true  when  the  volume  was  larger  as  well  as 
what  is  true  now  when  it  is  smaller  and  those  who 
are  here  occupy  a somewhat  unusual  position  in  the 
various  occupations.  That  the  wages  of  Japanese 
averaged  as  much  at  some  time  as  those  of  some 
groups  of  workers  of  other  races  does  not  prove 
that  they  did  not  underbid  in  order  to  secure  em- 
ployment. That  they  at  times  underbid  proves 
nothing  with  reference  to  the  desirability  of  a limited 
or  a selected  irpmigration.  That  the  wages  of 

30 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 


Japanese  are  not  low  now  does  not  prove  that  they 
may  not  have  been  low  under  other  conditions  or 
that  the  Japanese  are  economically  desirable.  It 
is  only  by  the  most  careful  and  conscientious  study 
that  the  economic  facts  involved  can  be  clearly 
ascertained. 

What  has  Experience  Shown  ? — Most  of  those 
who  immigrated  directly  or  indirectly  to  the  Pacific 
Coast  previous  to  1908  came  to  begin  as  wage 
earners  on  the  lowest  rung  of  the  industrial  ladder. 
They  came  to  Japanese  boarding  houses  and  from 
there  most  of  them  secured  their  first  employment 
as  section  hands  on  the  railway,  as  agricultural 
laborers  in  field  and  orchard,  or  as  domestic  servants 
and  house  cleaners  in  the  large  cities.  Much  smaller 
numbers  entered  other  industrial  employments  or 
secured  places  in  shops  and  stores.  What  has 
twenty  years’  experience  in  some  of  the  more  im- 
portant branches  of  activity  shown  of  importance 
in  connection  with  the  problems  of  Japanese  immi- 
gration? What  does  it  show  as  regards  the  plane 
of  competition,  as  regards  efficiency  and  ability  to 
rise,  and  as  regards  the  difference  between  the 
period  closing  with  1907  and  that  embracing  the 
last  six  years?  Brief  statements  relating  to  em- 
ployment on  the  railways,  in  the  salmon  industry, 
and  in  the  lumber  mills  will  be  found  to  be  distinctly 
worth  the  while  in  answering  these  questions. 

Japanese  as  Section  Hands.  — The  first  Japanese 
employed  as  section  hands  were  sent  out  from 
Portland,  Oregon,  about  twenty-five  years  ago. 
With  this  as  a beginning  when  the  immigration  had 

31 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

only  really  begun,  the  numbers  increased  with  the 
increasing  volume  until  in  1906  some  13,000  were 
employed  as  common  laborers  about  railroad  shops 
and  in  maintenance  of  way.  By  1900  they  had 
found  employment  on  nearly  all  of  the  railroads  of 
the  West.  In  1909,  largely  because  of  a strong 
tendency  of  the  members  of  this  race  to  seek  the 
most  remunerative  and  most  agreeable  employment, 
the  total  number  employed  by  the  railroad  com- 
panies, in  spite  of  an  increasing  number  in  the  shops, 
had  fallen  to  about  10,000.  At  present  the  number 
is  considerably  smaller. 

Employed  at  Lower  Wages  but  usually  did  not 
displace  Others.  — As  section  hands  the  Japanese 
have  always  been  in  great  demand,  except  in  the 
Southwest  where  the  cheaper  Mexicans  have  found 
preferment.  The  demand  was  particularly  strong 
after  1898,  when  enlarging  opportunity  for  employ- 
ment in  city,  in  mills,  and  in  the  mines  and  smelters 
caused  the  laborers  who  had  been  employed  to  drift 
away  from  their  section  work  with  its  relatively 
low  wages,  isolation,  and  hard  living  conditions. 
The  Japanese  were  very  extensively  substituted  for 
other  men  who  had  disappeared  because  of  their 
unwillingness  to  remain  at  the  stationary  or  slowly 
increasing  wages.  The  instances  of  displacement 
to  introduce  Japanese  gangs  were  comparatively 
few.  Yet  it  is  true  that  in  the  majority  of  cases  the 
J apanese  when  first  employed  were  paid  a lower  rate 
per  hour  than  was  paid  to  other  section  hands,  in- 
cluding the  immigrant  Italians,  Greeks,  and  Slavs. 
The  relatively  low  wage  they  accepted  was  one 

32 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 

reason  for  their  preferment,  for  the  selection  of 
races  as  section  hands  has  turned  more  upon  the 
rates  of  wages  than  upon  efficiency.  It  is  likely 
to  be  so  with  large  corporations  generally  when 
selecting  unskilled  laborers  for  employment  in 
large  numbers. 

Conveniently  obtained  through  “ Contractors.”  — 

A factor  of  greater  importance  than  the  wages  paid 
is  found,  however,  in  the  convenience  with  which 
the  Japanese  were  secured  through  “ contractors  ” 
of  their  own  race.  Except  for  the  Greeks,  in  some 
instances,  most  of  the  laborers  in  unskilled  work 
had  to  be  secured  through  ordinary  employment 
agencies  which  involved  much  uncertainty  and,  at 
times,  some  expense  on  the  part  of  the  railway  com- 
pany. Not  so  the  Japanese.  The  arrangements 
between  two  railway  companies  operating  in  the 
Northwest  and  a J apanese  supply  company  with  its 
main  office  in  Seattle  were  essentially  the  same 
as  the  arrangement  between  other  railway  com- 
panies and  the  “ contractors  ” through  whom  Jap- 
anese laborers  were  secured.  In  return  for  the 
opportunity  to  provide  its  men  with  such  supplies  as 
they  did  not  purchase  locally  and  the  free  transpor- 
tation of  these,  the  company  supplied  to  the  best 
of  its  ability  these  two  railroad  companies  with  the 
number  of  section  men  and  other  laborers  needed 
from  time  to  time.  It  supplied  necessary  inter- 
preters and  paid  off  the  men.  Its  remuneration 
came  from  the  profit  on  supplies  sold  and  an  inter- 
preter’s fee  of  $i  per  month  and  a second  fee  of 
five  cents  per  day  for  each  man,  these  fees,  of  course, 

D 33 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


being  deducted  from  the  earnings  of  the  men  em- 
ployed. 

Efficient  Laborers.  — This  method  of  securing 
laborers  was  the  greatest  factor  in  creating  an 
effective  demand  for  Japanese  section  hands. 
Thorough  organization  as  well  as  relatively  low 
rates  of  wages  caused  the  Japanese  to  be  the  most 
effective  competitors  for  employment.  But  once 
employed,  another  factor  entered  into  the  situa- 
tion.  The  Japanese  found  favor  with  the  road- 

masters  and  foremen  because  of  their  efficiency, 
and  their  good  behavior  in  camp.  On  the  whole 
they  proved  to  be  better  workmen  than  any  of  the 
immigrant  races,  the  Mexicans  excepted,  and  the 
absence  of  brawls  in  camp  set  them  in  strong  con- 
trast to  certain  other  competing  races.  And  so  it  is 
found  that  with  the  shrewd  bargaining  ability  of  the 
contractor  as  an  active  factor,  the  rate  of  wages  of 
Japanese  advanced  more  rapidly  than  that  of  other 
races  until  in  some  instances  the  same  rate  of  pay 
obtained  for  all  races  even  before  the  restrictions 
upon  further  immigration  were  imposed  in  1907. 

With  Decreasing  Numbers  no  Underpayment  at 
Present.  — In  recent  years  with  the  scarcity  of 
Japanese  laborers  and  a still  greater  appreciation  of 
them  on  the  part  of  the  roadmasters,  practically 
all,  if  not  all,  underpayment  of  Japanese  mainte- 
nance of  way  men  has  disappeared.  In  every  in- 
stance in  which  data  were  recently  secured,  it  was 
found  that  Japanese  and  European  immigrants 
were  being  paid  the  same  rate  — $1.50,  or  whatever 
it  might  be,  per  day  of  ten  hours.  Not  only  have 

34 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 


the  Japanese  risen  to  the  general  wage  level ; as 
the  most  interesting  detail  observed  in  my  inves- 
tigations, because  of  efficiency,  ambition,  long 
employment,  and  trustworthiness,  to-day  many 
Japanese  are  employed  as  foremen  of  section  and 
extra  gangs  — and  frequently,  perhaps  more  fre- 
quently than  not,  over  Greeks  and  Italian  laborers. 
The  San  Pedro,  Los  Angeles,  and  Salt  Lake  has 
about  thirty  Japanese  foremen;  the  Oregon,  Wash- 
ington Railroad  and  Navigation  Company,  five; 
the  Chicago,  Burlington,  and  Quincy,  twenty-five  — 
eleven  of  them  over  non- Japanese  “ gangs,”  while 
many  are  found  on  the  Northern  Pacific,  the  Union 
Pacific,  and  other  railroads.  In  1909,  so  far  as  could 
be  learned,  no  Japanese  had  risen  above  the_posi- 
tion  of  assistant  to  some  white  foreman.  They  now 
promise  to  occupy  to  a considerable  extent  the 
cherished  place  of  the  rapidly  disappearing  Irish  in 
these  supervisory  positions.  If  this  practical  test 
is  conclusive,  the  Japanese  have  demonstrated  their 
industrial  superiority  to  the  South  and  East  Euro- 
peans so  far  as  maintenance  of  way  work  is  con- 
cerned. 

Employment  by  Two  Railway  Companies  Typical. 
— The  history  of  the  employment  of  Japanese  by 
the  two  railway  companies  already  referred  to  as 
operating  in  the  Northwest  may  be  presented  in 
summary  form  in  order  to  make  the  discussion  more 
concrete. 

The  Japanese  laborers  employed  by  these  two 
railway  companies,  as  already  explained,  have  been 
obtained  through  a supply  company  with  its  main 

35 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

office  in  Seattle,  but  with  branch  offices  at  the  vari- 
ous division  points  on  the  roads  in  Washington  and 
Montana.  The  average  number  of  men  supplied 
gradually  increased  from  200,  when  first  used  in 
1898,  to  2,295  1907-  The  number  has  now  fallen 

to  1,500  — which  is  a larger  number  by  far  than 
employed  by  any  other  two  companies.  When 
first  employed  as  section  hands,  the  Japanese  were 
paid  10  or  12  cents  per  hour,  according  to  the 
division  of  the  road  to  which  they  were  assigned. 
For  some  years  previous  to  1907  the  corresponding 
rates  of  wages  per  hour  had  been  13  and  15  cents. 
At  the  time  of  the  financial  depression  occurring 
toward  the  end  of  that  year,  wages  were  reduced 
somewhat,  but  they  were  soon  increased  to  12  or  14 
cents,  at  which  rates  they  were  paid  at  the  time 
the  Immigration  Commission  made  its  investiga- 
tions in  1909.  “ At  these  wages,”  the  Commission 

reports,  “ the  Japanese  have  always  been  lower 
paid  than  any  race  save  the  few  remaining  Chinese. 
Their  wages  have  usually  been  25  cents  per  day  less 
than  those  paid  the  Italians,  for  example.  Most 
of  the  Greek,  Scandinavian,  and  Austrian  section 
hands  are  paid  $1.50  per  day,  but  whatever  the 
wage  in  the  different  localities  investigated,  it  was 
found  to  be  somewhat  higher  than  that  paid  the 
Japanese  similarly  employed.”  At  that  time,  how- 
ever, the  Japanese  were  very  generally  preferred  by 
the  railway  officials  concerned  to  the  European  im- 
migrants, man  for  man.  The  good  opinion  of  the 
roadmasters  is  now  well  shown  by  the  large  number 
of  foremen  to  which  reference  has  been  made, 

36 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 

Since  1909,  wages  have  advanced  and  all  races  are 
now  paid  the  same  rate  when  similarly  employed. 
In  1912  the  Japanese  section  hands,  it  is  said,  were 
paid  $1.75  and  $2  per  day.  At  present  the  wages 
are  25  cents  per  day  less. 

The  history  of  the  employment  of  section  hands 
has  been  substantially  the  same  on  other  railroads 
except  where  there  has  been  Mexican  competition, 
and  except  that  in  a few  cases  the  discrimination 
against  the  J apanese  in  the  rate  of  wages  had  ceased 
before  1909.  In  the  Southwest  the  Mexicans  dis- 
placed the  Japanese  after  a brief  trial  because  they 
were  cheaper  and  were  regarded  as  better  laborers 
for  heavy  work  under  the  trying  climatic  conditions 
which  obtain  there. 

Japanese  in  Railway  Shops.  — The  essentials  of 
the  history  of  the  Japanese  employed  in  and  about 
railroad  shops  and  of  those  employed  in  maintenance 
of  way  do  not  differ.  Employment  of  J apanese  as 
common  laborers  in  the  yards  and  shops  followed 
their  employment  as  section  hands.  Here  their 
wages  were  somewhat  higher  than  in  niaintenance 
of  way,  but  lower  than  those  paid  to  the  white  men, 
largely  South  and  East  European  immigrants,  em- 
ployed in  the  same  capacities.  By  1909  a consider- 
able number  of  them  had  advanced  to  semi-skilled 
positions.  During  the  last  five  years  their  wages 
have  advanced  to  the  general  rate  and  still  further 
occupational  advance  has  been  made.  As  against 
twenty  section  hands  at  $1.65  per  day,  and  seventy 
“extra  gang”  men  at  $1.75,  the  San  Pedro,  Los 
Angeles,  and  Salt  Lake  now  employs  about  200 

37 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


Japanese  in  its  shops.  They  are  engaged  in  various 
occupations,  their  wages  varying  from  17I  cents  per 
hour  for  unskilled  labor  to  40  cents  per  hour  for  the 
few  who  have  become  skilled  workmen.  These  men 
are  supplied  along  with  Mexican  laborers  by  the 
Japanese  contractor  who  formerly  supplied  only  men 
of  his  own  race  — some  500  or  more  in  the  spring  of 
1909. 

In  Lumber  Mills.  — In  the  Northwest  and  in 
Canada  a large  percentage  of  the  Japanese  have 
been  employed  in  the  lumber  mills  and  in  the  fish 
canneries.  According  to  the  Census  the  average 
number  of  wage  earners  employed  in  the  lumber 
and  shingle  mills  of  Oregon  and  Washington  in 
1909  was  58,815.  Of  these  some  2,400  or  2,500  were 
Japanese.^  They  were  employed  in  comparatively 
few  of  the  mills  — some  67  of  the  1,263  in  Wash- 
ington and  only  a few  in  Oregon  — and  chiefly  as 
yard  laborers.  A small  percentage  had  advanced 
to  semi-skilled  work  while  in  one  or  two  mills  they 
were  employed  in  occupations  requiring  consider- 
able skill.  In  the  lumber  industry,  however,  both 
their  employment  and  their  progress  had  been 
checked  by  a hostile  public  opinion.  In  fact, 
because  of  race  prejudice,  in  some  instances  so 
violent  as  to  cause  riots,  they  had  been  discrimin- 
ated against  to  the  point  of  being  refused  employ- 
ment in  most  of  the  mills.  In  other  cases  they  had 
been  limited  to  “ outside  ” jobs. 

Paid  relatively  Low  Wages.  — Concerning  the 
terms  on  which  the  Japanese  worked,  the  Immigra- 
1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  25,  Part  V. 

38 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 

tion  Commission  presents  the  following  summary 
statement : ^ 

“ Where  the  Japanese  have  been  employed  they 
have,  without  exception,  been  paid  lower  wages 
than  men  of  other  races  engaged  in  the  same  occu- 
pations. In  the  one  mill  investigated  where  they 
were  employed  in  skilled  and  semi-skilled  posi- 
tions, also,  their  wages  were  considerably  lower 
than  those  paid  to  white  men  employed  in 
similar  positions  in  other  mills.  While  the  Jap- 
anese were  employed  as  trimmers,  edgermen, 
planing-mill  feeders,  lumber  graders,  lathe  mill 
men,  and  carpenters  at  wages  varying  from  $1.65  to 
$2  per  day,  at  other  mills  white  men  engaged  in 
these  occupations  were  paid  from  $2.75  to  $3.50  per 
day.  . . . The  wages  paid  to  other  men,  including 
the  small  number  of  East  Indians,  engaged  in  com- 
mon labor  are  higher  than  those  paid  to  the  Jap- 
anese similarly  employed.  While  ‘ white  men’  are 
paid  $1.75,  $2,  and  $2.25  as  common  laborers, 
Japanese  are  paid  $1.50,  $1.60,  and  $1.75,  and 
rarely  $2,  and  in  one  mill  employing  a large  num- 
ber they  receive  only  $1.25  per  day.” 

Corresponding  differences  have  from  the  first 
existed  between  the  wages  paid  to  Japanese  and 
white  laborers  employed  in  this  industry. 

“ On  the  whole  the  mill  managers  who  have 
employed  Japanese  are  of  the  opinion  that  they  are 
more  satisfactory  at  the  rate  of  wages  they  are  paid 
than  the  white  men  available  for  work  as  common 
laborers  at  the  wages  they  command  in  the  industry. 

‘ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  47. 

39 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

While  the  Japanese  have  never  been  employed  in 
the  majority  of  the  mills  and  have  been  discharged 
from  some  others,  this  has  been  due  chiefly  to  the 
race  feeling  exhibited  against  them  and  seemingly 
closely  connected  with  the  fact  that  they  are  of  a 
different  race  and  tongue  and  have  always  worked 
for  lower  wages  than  were  paid  to  white  men.” 

With  Decreasing  Numbers  Wages  have  Ad- 
vanced. — Even  in  1909  the  number  of  Japanese 
employed  in  the  lumber  industry  was  some  400  or 
500  smaller  than  in  1907.  During  the  five  years 
ending  with  1913,  the  number  still  further  declined. 
A considerable  number  of  those  who  have  remained 
in  the  industry  have  advanced  somewhat  in  the 
occupational  scale,  and,  if  the  wage  data  collected 
by  the  Japanese  Association  may  be  accepted, 
their  wages  have  advanced  sharply  and  most  of 
the  underpayment  as  compared  to  other  races  has 
disappeared.  (See  table  in  footnote  on  opposite 
page.)_ 

It  is  not  necessary  to  review  the  history  of 
Japanese  laborers  in  other  employments  except 
to  add  a word  with  reference  to  the  canning  of 
salmon,  for  while  the  details  differ  somewhat,  the 
same  essential  facts  are  found  in  almost  all  cases. 

Japanese  in  Fish  Canneries.  — The  canning  of 
fish  along  the  Columbia  River,  about  Puget  Sound, 
and  in  Alaska  has  been  built  upon  Chinese  labor. 
While  the  catching  of  fish  has  been  a ” white  man’s 
job,”  the  canning  has  almost  always  been  done  by 
Chinese  contractors  on  a piece  basis.  This  system 
developed  when  most  of  the  work  was  done  by 

40 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 


Chinamen,  and  with  comparatively  few  exceptions 
it  is  still  retained  because  of  its  convenience.  With 
the  increasing  scarcity  of  Chinese  laborers,  however, 
other  races  have  been  employed  in  increasing  num- 
bers, and  generally  assigned  to  the  less  skilled  and 
heavier  work.  In  1909  some  10,000  men  were 
employed  during  the  busiest  season  in  these  can- 
neries. Of  the  10,000  some  3,600  were  Japanese. 
At  present  the  number  is  much  smaller,  for  the 
Japanese  have  sought  more  agreeable  and  more 
remunerative  work,  and  the  attitude  of  the  larger 

1 The  six  mills  included  in  the  following  table  are  said  to  be 
typical.  The  table  shows  that  there  is  now  little  difference  in  the 
wages  paid  Japanese  and  white  men. 


WAGES 


Sawmills 

Laborers 

Mach. 

Dept. 

Planer 

Yard 

W 

J 

w 

J 

W 

J 

W 

J 

1 

100 

100 

$2.50 

$2.50 

$2.50 

$2.50 

$2.10 

$2.10 

2 

I17 

66 

2.50 

2.35 

2.25 

2.25 

2.25 

2.15 

2-75 

2-75 

3-50 

3 

35 

22 

2.50 

2.25 

2.25 

2.25 

2.25 

2.25 

2.75 

2.65 

3.00 

4 

62 

41 

2-75 

2.50 

2.40 

2.40 

2.25 

2.25 

3 00 

2.75 

2.50 

2.50 

2.50 

2.50 

4-50 

3-25 

6.00 

$150  Mo.  Engineer 

5 

95 

93 

2.50 

2.50 

2.25 

2.25 

2.25 

2.15 

6 

16 

55 

3.00 

2.50 

2.25 

2.25 

2.25 

2.25 

W indicates  white. 

J indicates  Japanese. 

41 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

companies  operating  with  San  Francisco  as  a supply- 
base  has  been  decidedly  unfavorable  to  the  Japanese. 

Some  Undesirable  Japanese  Employed.  — In 
1909  five  San  Francisco  companies  sent  2,766  can- 
nery hands  to  their  stations  in  Alaska  and  in 
Washington.  Of  these,  1,235  were  Japanese;  1,166, 
Chinese;  362,  Filipinos;  and  53,  Koreans.  Most  of 
these  Japanese  were  of  a very  undesirable  class. 
They  were  always  regarded  with  disfavor  by  their 
countrymen  and  were  generally  disliked  by  their 
employers.  This  dislike  is  explained  by  the  Im- 
migration Commission  in  these  words : ^ 

‘ ‘ They  are  often  unreliable  in  their  contractual  rela- 
tions and  give  some  trouble  through  excessive  gam- 
bling and  drinking.  Where  employed  on  a piece 
basis  their  work  is  said  frequently  to  be  dishonestly 
done.  Their  employment  is  due  to  the  diminish- 
ing number  of  the  Chinese  who  now  earn  rather 
higher  wages  and  are  hard  to  secure.  That  they 
are  not  as  desirable  as  the  Chinese  is  evidenced 
by  the  fact  that  two  important  companies  specified 
in  their  contracts  with  Chinese  in  1909  that  the 
number  of  Japanese  employed  should  not  exceed 
the  number  of  Chinese.  This  action  was  taken  to 
secure  more  satisfactory  work.  Where  Koreans 
and  Filipinos  have  been  employed  they  are  regarded 
as  more  desirable  than  the  Japanese.” 

At  present  this  low  class  of  Japanese  is  scarcely 
represented  in  the  population  of  San  Francisco. 
Upon  inquiry  it  was  found  that  only  one  of  the 


1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  407. 

42 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 


smaller  companies  operating  from  San  Francisco 
had  sent  any  Japanese  to  the  fish  canneries  this 
year,  the  total  number  of  that  race  sailing  being 
only  about  twenty.  With  a depressed  condition 
of  industry,  it  has  been  an  easy  matter  to  sub- 
stitute other  races  for  them.  Mexicans,  Filipinos, 
Italians,  and  others  have  been  employed  in  increas- 
ing numbers  and  are  said  to  be  very  much  more 
satisfactory  than  the  Japanese.  The  San  Fran- 
cisco packers  express  no  regret  that  the  immigration 
of  Japanese  laborers  has  been  greatly  restricted. 

The  Most  Important  Instance  where  Japanese 
Labor  found  Unsatisfactory.  — This  reference  to 
the  salmon  canneries  has  been  made  because  it 
furnishes  the  most  important  instance  where  the 
employers  of  Japanese  laborers  in  industrial  pur- 
suits have  not  found  them  at  least  fairly  satis- 
factory. In  most  instances  the  history  of  their 
employment  in  railway  work  and  lumbering  has 
been  typical.  With  few  exceptions  their  loss  in 
numbers  in  an  industry  where  they  once  secured 
employment  has  been  due  to  the  restrictions  im- 
posed upon  further  immigration  and  the  pronounced 
tendency  on  the  part  of  the  Japanese  to  seek  better 
opportunities  and  more  satisfactory  conditions  in 
the  cities  and  on  the  farms.  When  immigration 
was  not  greatly  restricted  a large  percentage  were 
carried  out  from  the  ports  where  they  landed  to 
do  rough  work  in  industrial  employments.  There 
has  been  a strong  “ back  flow  ” to  the  cities  and 
to  agricultural  employment,  where  the  work  and 
business  of  the  Japanese  has  been  more  significant. 

43 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Immigration  Commission’s  Conclusions  as  to 
Industrial  Employment  of  Japanese.  — In  sub- 
mitting his  report  to  the  Immigration  Commission, 
the  writer  attempted  to  summarize  the  more 
general  facts  relating  to  the  employment  of  Jap- 
anese in  non-agricultural  industries.  This  sum- 
mary may  be  freely  quoted  here  in  order  that  the 
important  facts  of  an  earlier  situation  may  receive 
due  emphasis.  Attention  will  then  be  called  to 
the  more  recent  developments. 

After  noting  the  few  instances  where  Japanese 
laborers  were  introduced  — as  other  immigrants 
have  been  introduced  — as  strike  breakers,  the 
summary  proceeds  as  follows  : ^ 

“ A premium  has  been  placed  upon  the  substi- 
tution of  Japanese  rather  than  of  other  immi- 
grant races  by  the  fact  that  they  were  made  easily 
available  by  the  Japanese  contractors,  and  that 
because  of  the  position  of  the  contractors,  their 
employment  involved  the  least  inconvenience  to  the 
employers.  Almost  without  exception  the  Japanese 
employed  in  the  industries  of  the  West  have  been 
secured  through  J apanese  ‘ bosses  ’ who  undertake  to 
provide  the  number  of  men  required,  and  frequently 
keep  the  ‘ time  ’ of  the  men,  and  pay  them  off,  in 
return  for  an  interpreter’s  fee  of  $i  per  month  (gen- 
erally collected),  a commission  on  their  earnings 
(usually  5 per  cent  but  sometimes  less),  and  the 
privilege  (generally  exercised)  of  supplying  the  men 
with  such  goods  as  they  do  not  purchase  at  local 
stores.  These  contractors  have  had  a supply  of 


1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  i,  pp.  664  et  seq. 

44 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 


labor  available  ; other  cheap  laborers  must  be  ‘ re- 
cruited,’ largely  through  employment  agents  in  the 
cities  of  the  Middle  West,  which  involves  competi- 
tion with  the  industries  more  conveniently  reached 
from  these  supply  centers.  This  organization  of 
the  Japanese  laborers  must  be  emphasized  above  all 
other  things  in  explaining  the  demand  for  them. 

“ The  Japanese  have  usually  worked  for  a lower 
wage  than  the  members  of  any  other  race  save  the 
Chinese  and  the  Mexican.  In  the  salmon  can- 
neries the  Chinese  have  been  paid  higher  wages 
than  the  Japanese  engaged  in  the  same  occupations. 
In  the  lumber  industry  all  races,  including  the  East 
Indian,  have  been  paid  higher  wages  than  the  Jap- 
anese doing  the  same  kind  of  work.  As  section 
hands  and  laborers  in  railway  shops  they  have  been 
paid  as  much  as  or  more  than  the  Chinese  and  more 
than  the  Mexicans,  but  as  a rule  less  than  the  white 
men  of  many  races.  In  coal  mining  they  have  been 
employed  chiefly  as  miners  and  loaders  and  have 
worked  at  the  common  piece  rate,  but  in  Wyoming, 
where  they  have  been  employed  as  ‘ company 
men,’  they  were  paid  less  per  day  than  the  Euro- 
pean immigrants  employed  in  large  numbers  until 
their  acceptance  as  members  of  the  United  Mine 
Workers  in  1907  gave  them  the  benefit  of  the 
standard  rate  established  by  bargaining  between 
the  union  and  the  operators.  As  construction 
laborers  they  have  usually,  though  not  invariably, 
been  paid  less  than  the  other  races  employed  except 
the  East  Indians  and  the  Mexicans.  Competition 
among  the  races  engaged  in  unskilled  work  appears 
generally  to  have  hinged  upon  the  rate  of  wages 
paid  rather  than  the  efficiency  of  the  races  em- 
ployed. 


45 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


“ During  the  period  when  the  Japanese  were  ar- 
riving in  this  country  in  largest  numbers,  the  ques- 
tion of  differences  in  wages  between  the  white  races 
and  the  Japanese  began  to  solve  itself  to  such  an  ex- 
tent that  gradually  the  variation  became  trifling  and 
there  were  instances  where  there  was  no  diversity  in 
the  wages  paid  each.  This  is  accounted  for  partly 
by  the  skillful  bargaining  of  the  few  large  contrac- 
tors who  have  supplied  the  great  majority  of  the 
laborers  for  work  in  canneries,  on  the  railroads,  in 
the  lumber  mills,  and  for  other  industrial  enterprises, 
partly  by  the  fact  that  there  was  an  increasing  de- 
mand for  Japanese  labor  in  other  industries,  which 
one  after  the  other  had  been  opened  to  them. 

“ Though  regarded  as  less  desirable  than  the 
Chinese  and  the  Mexicans,  roadmasters  and  section 
foremen  usually  prefer  Japanese  to  the  Italians, 
Greeks,  and  Slavs,  as  section  hands. 

“ In  the  railway  shops  they  are  usually  given 
higher  rank  than  the  Mexicans  and  Greeks  and 
sometimes  the  Italians  as  well.  They  are  versatile, 
adaptable,  and  ambitious,  and  are  regarded  as 
good  laborers  and  helpers.  In  salmon  canning, 
on  the  other  hand,  they  are  universally  regarded 
as  much  less  desirable  than  the  Chinese  and  are 
inferior  to  the  Filipinos,  who  have  recently  engaged 
in  the  industry  in  Alaska.  Not  only  are  the 
Japanese  less  experienced  in  the  industry  than 
the  Chinese,  but  they  are  considered  less  reliable 
in  contractual  relations  and  do  not  have  the  highly 
developed  instinct  of  workmanship  which  causes  the 
Chinaman  to  be  regarded  as  the  most  careful  and 
the  most  trustworthy  laborer.  . . . On  the  whole, 
however,  the  Japanese  have  been  regarded  as  satis- 
factory laborers  at  the  wage  paid.  . . . 

46 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 


“ Regardless  of  these  considerations,  however,  in 
most  branches  of  industry  the  Japanese  have  found 
it  difficult  to  make  much  advance.  In  the  lumber 
industry  the  great  majority  of  employers  have 
never  engaged  them  at  all.  In  some  instances  this 
is  explained  by  the  race  antipathy  of  the  employer, 
and  more  frequently  by  that  of  the  white  employees, 
who  object  strongly  to  the  employment  of  Japanese, 
save  possibly  in  the  yards  and  along  the  streams 
where  there  is  work  other  men  refuse  to  do.  In  sev- 
eral instances  the  members  of  the  community  have 
exhibited  their  opposition  to  the  employment  of  this 
race  by  demanding  their  discharge  and,  upon  occa- 
sions, threatening  violence.  The  same  situation  is 
found  in  most  industries  in  which  the  Japanese 
have  been  employed  where  large  groups  of  men  are 
brought  together  at  one  place  and  the  work  is  of 
such  a character  that  the  members  of  different  races 
must  work  in  close  association.  While  exceptions 
are  found  in  a few  other  industries,  it  is  mainly  in 
the  salmon  canneries  and  in  railway  work  that  a 
hostile  public  opinion  has  had  little  effect  upon  the 
employment  of  Japanese. 

“ Chiefly  because  of  the  attitude  of  other  laborers 
and  the  fact  that  many  of  the  Japanese  do  not 
understand  English  and  must  be  set  at  work  in 
groups  with  an  interpreter,  the  Japanese  have 
generally  engaged  in  unskilled  work.” 

This  summary  is  a conservative  statement  of 
fact.  Since  it  was  written,  however,  some  changes 
have  occurred. 

The  Rule  of  the  “ Contractor  ” has  Weakened.  — 

With  the  passing  of  time  and  the  presence  of  few 
recently  arrived  laborers,  the  rule  of  the  contractor 

47 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

has  perceptibly  weakened.  The  competition  of 
Japanese  has  as  a consequence  lost  much  of  its 
force.  This  fact  is  perhaps  of  no  importance,  how- 
ever, in  considering  the  effects  of  a further  immi- 
gration of  any  considerable  proportions,  for  the 
old  organization  would  probably  regain  most  of 
its  former  strength  where  laborers  were  needed  in 
comparatively  large  numbers.  Such  an  organiza- 
tion of  the  unskilled  labor  supply  must  be  accepted 
as  a part  of  the  situation  accompanying  any  con- 
siderable immigration. 

The  Lower  Level  of  Wages  has  practically  Dis- 
appeared.— The  lower  level  of  wages  paid  Jap- 
anese has  practically  disappeared  largely  because 
of  the  effective  restrictions  imposed  upon  further 
immigration,  the  increased  efficiency  which  has 
come  with  experience  and  a knowledge  of  English, 
and  the  tendency  of  the  Japanese  to  search  out  the 
most  remunerative  employments  or  to  establish 
themselves  as  farmers  or  business  men. 

Occupational  Advance  Made.  — One  factor  of 
considerable  significance  is  that  the  Japanese  have 
shown  good  ability  in  industrial  pursuits  and  have 
made  considerable  occupational  advance.  They 
have  shown  themselves  to  be  an  industrially  efficient 
people.  Another  is  that  they  have  shown  they  are 
not  content,  as  were  the  Chinese,  to  remain  on  the 
lowest  rung  of  the  industrial  ladder.  Many  whose 
occupational  advance  has  been  slow  have  sought 
to  better  themselves  by  turning  to  agriculture  or  by 
engaging  in  business.  In  this  respect  they  are  very 
much  like  the  more  ambitious  Americans. 

48 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  WAGE  EARNERS 


Few  Japanese  Employers  in  Industry.  — Few 

Japanese,  save  the  laundrymen  and  tailors,  have 
engaged  in  industry  as  employers  of  labor.  Near 
Portland  a prominent  Japanese  conducts  a large 
shingle  mill.  In  Colorado  another  has  been  very 
successful  as  a contractor  in  building  railways  and 
irrigation  systems.  These  isolated  instances  have 
no  significance,  however,  except  that  they  show  the 
business  ability  and  industrial  efficiency  of  the 
Japanese  race. 


E 


49 


CHAPTER  IIT 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES ; THEIR  WORK 
AND  BUSINESS 

Japanese  in  City  Occupations.  — While  the  largest 
numbers  of  Japanese  have  sought  employment  in 
railway  maintenance  of  way,  in  the  mines,  in  the 
lumber  mills,  or  in  the  fish  canneries,  and  in  the 
fields  and  orchards,  a large  percentage  of  the  student 
class  and  of  the  business  men  have  remained  in  the 
cities,  where  opportunities  for  social  life  and  em- 
ployment, and,  perhaps,  for  study  and  observation, 
appealed  more  strongly  to  them.  To  these  others 
have  been  added  as  a result  of  a “ back  flow  ” from 
non-urban  employments,  which  have  not  given 
opportunity  for  those  reared  in  cities  to  follow  their 
crafts  or  business,  have  been  accompanied  by  hard 
and  unsatisfactory  living  conditions,  and  in  which, 
except  by  becoming  independent  farmers,  the 
Japanese  have  generally  found  occupational  ad- 
vance difficult.  As  in  the  case  of  the  ambitious 
and  socially  inclined  natives,  many  Japanese  have 
been  lured  or  driven  into  the  cities.  There  domes- 
tic service  and  related  occupations,  shopkeeping, 
and  the  professions  have  given  them  opportunity. 
In  spite  of  much  discrimination,  the  needs  of  their 
countrymen  and  their  ability  in  competition  with 
other  races  have  enabled  them  to  make  headway  in 

50 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

a limited  number  of  occupations  and  as  shop- 
keepers. In  1909  the  Immigration  Commission 
estimated  that  from  22,000  to  26,000  of  something 
more  than  80,000  gainfully  occupied  were  engaged 
in  city  trades  and  business  in  the  West.  The  pro- 
portion so  occupied  at  present  is  somewhat  larger 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  branches  of  business 
closely  connected  with  the  influx  of  new  immigrants 
have  appreciably  waned. 

The  economic  activities  of  Japanese  in  cities 
may  be  treated  in  two  groups  : those  in  employ- 
ments not  connected  with  Japanese  business,  and 
those  which  are  so  connected.  Their  significance 
can  be  shown  only  by  introducing  considerable 
history.  To  this  a few  noteworthy  things  of  recent 
development  are  to  be  added. 

Few  employed  in  Factories  and  Workshops.  — 
The  Immigration  Commission  found  that  very  few 
Japanese  were  employed  in  factories  and  workshops. 
Some  were  found  employed  in  sorting  and  packing 
tea,  in  manufacturing  cigars  and  cigarettes,  and  in 
the  manufacture  of  iron  and  steel  in  San  Francisco, 
in  manufacturing  gloves  in  Seattle,  and  in  meat 
packing  in  Omaha,  but  in  none  of  these  industries 
had  more  than  a few  been  employed.  The  same 
general  situation  obtains  today.  This  limited  em- 
ployment in  the  general  industrial  field  is  explained 
to  some  extent  by  the  fact  that  comparatively  few 
have  immigrated  from  cities  with  an  experience 
which  would  fit  them  for  such  employment,  but  to  a 
larger  extent  by  the  presence  of  other  cheap  immi- 
grant laborers,  union  opposition,  and  a general 

51 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

feeling  that  factory  employment  is  “ white  man’s 
work  ” — a tradition  established  in  California  es- 
pecially as  a result  of  the  successful  fight  against 
the  Chinese.  As  the  Immigration  Commission, 
with  reference  to  San  Francisco,  states,  the  Chinese 
“ at  one  time  predominated  in  the  shoe  factories, 
in  the  manufacture  of  clothing,  and  in  cigar  making. 
The  opposition  was  so  strong,  however,  that  most 
of  them  were  discharged  from  the  factories  engaged 
in  those  branches  of  production.  Moreover,  this 
widespread  opposition  to  the  Chinese  prevented 
occupations  in  other  establishments  conducted  by 
white  employers  from  being  opened  to  them.  No 
doubt  this  experience  accounts  largely  for  the  fact 
that  the  Japanese  have  never  been  conspicuously 
employed  in  any  branch  of  manufacture  in  San 
Francisco.  At  the  same  time  a large  influx  of 
Italians  and  the  smaller  influx  of  Russians,  Mexicans, 
Spaniards,  and  Porto  Ricans,  along  with  other 
races,  has  provided  an  abundance  of  cheap  labor 
for  manufactures  requiring  little  skill  and  which  are 
not  attractive  to  higher  classes  of  workmen.”  ^ 
With  a tradition  against  employing  Orientals  in 
factories  and  shops  and  with  strong  opposition 
when  Japanese  were  employed  in  the  manufacture 
of  shoes  in  San  Francisco,  employers  for  more 
than  thirty  years  have  generally  sought  to  employ 
white  persons  only,  and  the  doors  have  seldom  been 
opened  to  the  Asiatic  races. 

Domestic  Service.  — In  domestic  service  and  in 
related  employments  as  ” house  cleaners  ” and 
1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  98. 

52 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

“ day  workers,”  as  ” help  ” in  restaurants,  hotels, 
barrooms,  and  clubs,  and  as  ” general  help  ” in 
offices  and  stores  conducted  by  white  men,  on  the 
other  hand,  something  more  than  one  half  of  the 
Japanese  employed  in  cities  have  been  found. 
The  number  so  employed  in  the  West  was  reported 
by  the  Immigration  Commission  as  between  12,000 
and  15,000.  More  recently  they  have  advanced  in 
some  cases,  while  in  others  they  have  lost  ground. 
The  total  number  so  employed  at  present  is  perhaps 
about  the  same  as  it  was  in  1909. 

There  has  always  been  a dearth  of  domestic 
servants  in  the  West  at  much  higher  wages  than 
have  obtained  in  the  Eastern  states.  The  Japanese, 
like  the  Chinese  before  them,  have  accepted  the 
opportunity  offered.  Though  in  some  instances 
many  of  them  have  been  employed,  the  Immigra- 
tion Commission  found  that  the  number  of  white 
women  employed  in  those  cities  had  expanded  all 
the  while.  No  doubt  the  increase  of  wages  was 
retarded  somewhat  by  their  presence,  but  a sub- 
stantial increase  took  place  even  before  the  re- 
strictions upon  Japanese  immigration  took  effect  in 
1907. 

Day  Workers.  — The  Japanese  alone  have  made 
an  organized  effort  to  meet  the  demands  of  those  in 
need  of  temporary  and  irregular  service,  and,  in  Cali- 
fornia especially,  a large  number  have  been  thus  oc- 
cupied. These  “ day  workers,”  as  they  are  called, 
ordinarily  live  in  groups,  varying  from  six  to  as 
many  as  forty,  and  go  to  private  houses  to  do  house- 
cleaning, window  cleaning,  washing,  waiting  on 

53 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

table  and  gardening  as  calls  come  to  the  office  by 
telephone  or  otherwise.  Their  wages  have  always 
been  as  high  as  those  paid  women  for  housework.  In 
San  Francisco  the  rate  per  day  was  $1.50  in  1900. 
By  1903  it  was  $1.75,  by  1907,  $2.  It  is  now  con- 
siderably higher,  in  some  places  35  cents  per  hour. 
The  rates  by  the  hour  for  “ part  days  " have  been 
higher  and  the  “ fee  ” for  good  service,  such  as 
cooking  for  dinner  parties  and  waiting  on  table,  has 
been  larger  than  that  paid  for  unskilled  work.  This 
is  one  branch  of  employment  in  which  the  Japanese 
have  continued  to  advance  — in  spite  of  higher 
wages  commanded,  against  which  there  is  now 
considerable  protest  — because  of  the  great  con- 
venience of  their  organization  and  their  acceptabil- 
ity as  “ help.”  In  San  Francisco  there  were  162 
groups  of  ” house  cleaners  ” in  1913  as  against 
148  in  1909.  In  Los  Angeles  there  were  67  as 
against  18  four  years  before.  They  have  settled  in 
the  residence  districts  so  as  to  reach  the  place  of 
work  easily  and  quickly,  and  their  names  are  made 
to  stand  out  in  the  telephone  directory.  By 
organization  to  meet  this  need  of  service,  perhaps 
the  Japanese  have  added  more  to  the  comfort  of  the 
housewives  who  do  not  keep  regular  servants,  than 
to  the  comfort  or  profit  of  any  other  group  in  the 
population. 

Miscellaneous  Occupations.  Some  Opposition 
Aroused.  — As  dishwashers  and  ’bus  boys  in  hotels 
and  restaurants  and  as  cleaners  and  general  help 
in  saloons,  clubs,  and  stores,  they  have  shared  work 
with  white  men  chiefly.  The  Immigration  Com- 

54 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 


mission  found  that  when  employed  in  the  restau- 
rants and  hotels  they  worked  for  less  than  the  union 
scale  and  usually  for  a longer  day  or  for  a seven- 
day  week.  As  a result  the  Cooks’  Helpers’  Union 
in  San  Francisco  formerly  made  much  complaint 
of  their  underbidding.  It  was  found,  however, 
that  their  wages  in  1909  were  about  the  same  as 
those  of  non-union  white  men,  and  of  course  they 
have  substantially  increased  in  more  recent  years. 
In  many  cities  of  the  West  they  found  ready  em- 
ployment in  barrooms  as  cleaners  and  lunch  boys 
because  they  were  easily  secured  from  the  em- 
ployment offices  for  $10  or  $12  per  week,  while 
temperate  and  reliable  white  men  could  not  be 
easily  obtained.  Their  general  employment  in  bar- 
rooms in  San  Francisco  led  to  a boycott  of  many 
of  the  saloons  some  seven  or  eight  years  ago. 
This  hostile  movement  has  practically  died  out, 
however,  so  that  they  are  generally  employed  in 
saloons  in  San  Francisco  as  they  are  in  the  other 
cities  in  the  Pacific  Coast  states.  As  bell  boys  in 
hotels  they  have  been  found  to  be  acceptable  and 
are  very  generally  employed  in  that  capacity  in 
Portland  and  Seattle,  where  the  traveling  public 
has  not  shown  much  opposition.  In  California, 
however,  the  opposition  proved  too  great  and  few 
have  been  or  are  now  employed  in  the  hotels  of 
that  state.  Most  of  these  Japanese  are  of  the 
student  class  and  find  such  employment  agreeable. 
The  hotel  managers  have  employed  them  because 
of  the  difficulty  experienced  with  the  kind  of  white 
men  who  are  available  for  such  work  at  a com- 

55 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

paratively  small  wage.  In  all  the  larger  cities 
along  the  Coast  the  Japanese  are  employed  as 
cleaners  and  porters  in  drug  stores  and  many  retail 
establishments.  Here  again  it  has  been  difficult 
to  secure  responsible  white  men  of  good  appear- 
ance for  $io  to  $12  per  week. 

A General  Statement.  — This  brief  statement 
covers  sufficiently  well  the  employment  of  Japanese 
in  the  Western  cities,  except  in  connection  with 
their  own  business  establishments.  They  have 
usually  been  efficient  unless  handicapped  by  a poor 
knowledge  of  English,  they  have  been  easily  se- 
cured when  others  have  not,  and  though  they  have 
until  recently  been  “ cheap  labor  ” in  these  com- 
munities, it  is  safe  to  say  that  only  in  exceptional 
cases  have  they  undermined  the  working  conditions 
of  others  seeking  employment.  To  a large  extent 
they  have  “ filled  in  ” where  others  have  not  been 
attracted  in  large  numbers  because  of  the  character 
of  the  work.  In  few  branches  of  employment 
desired  by  white  men  have  the  Japanese  ever  been 
permitted  to  gain  a foothold. 

Japanese  engaged  in  Business  [or  Employed  by 
Others  so  Engaged.  — Much  more  interest  at- 
taches to  the  Japanese  engaged  in  business  and 
those  employed  by  their  countrymen  who  are  so 
engaged. 

Several  things  have  cooperated  to  cause  many 
Japanese  places  of  business  to  be  opened  in  the 
Pacific  Coast  cities.  Reference  has  already  been 
made  to  the  “ back  flow  ” from  employment  in 
maintenance  of  way,  mining,  lumbering,  and  agri- 

56 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

culture,  because  of  the  isolated  life,  lack  of  oppor- 
tunity (except  to  become  independent  farmers), 
and  tardy  occupational  advance.  The  especially 
strong  tendency  on  the  part  of  those  who  had 
engaged  in  business  or  been  reared  in  the  cities  of 
their  native  land,  to  seek  the  cities  where  their 
experience  would  count  for  most  is  noteworthy. 
So  also  is  the  strong  desire  on  the  part  of  nearly 
all  Japanese  to  escape  from  the  dependent  position 
of  the  wage  earner.  Independent  farming  and 
shopkeeping  and  the  like  have  presented  avenues 
of  escape  from  this  unpleasant  status,  and  oppor- 
tunities to  engage  in  them  have  been  eagerly  em- 
braced. In  the  strength  of  their  ambition  one 
reason  is  found  for  the  more  rapid  advance,  other 
than  occupational,  of  the  Japanese  than  of  any 
other  race  conspicuous  in  the  population  of  the 
Western  states. 

Necessity  of  Providing  for  the  Needs  of  their 
Countrymen.  — Another  important  factor  in  ac- 
counting for  their  advance  in  business  is  found 
in  the  urgent  needs  of  their  countrymen.  Almost 
universal  discrimination  against  them  in  boarding 
houses,  restaurants,  barber  shops,  and  places  of 
amusement  made  it  necessary  for  them  to  make 
provision  for  the  necessities  and  amusements  of 
their  fellows  as  they  immigrated.  Accordingly 
the  Japanese  boarding  house,  restaurant,  bath- 
house, barber  shop,  and  pool  room  have  appeared 
in  almost  every  community  with  more  than  a few 
Japanese.  Again,  immigrant  laborers  of  this  race 
have  been  organized  to  work  under  the  supervision 

57 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

of,  and  have  been  furnished  supplies  by,  “ con- 
tractors.” Hence  the  employment  agency  and  the 
“ supply  house.”  Moreover,  the  Japanese  immi- 
grants have  demanded  many  food  and  miscellane- 
ous articles  from  their  native  land.  This  furnished 
an  opportunity  for  importers  and  shopkeepers. 
Shops  for  the  publication  of  newspapers  and  maga- 
zines and  for  job  printing  in  the  Japanese  language 
came  as  a matter  of  course.  Furthermore,  the 
rapidly  growing  demand  on  the  part  of  the  general 
public  for  Japanese  toys  and  wares  gave  an  op- 
portunity for  the  Japanese  ” curio  ” dealer  just 
as  it  has  for  the  Chinese  shops  of  the  same  general 
character.  Finally,  as  time  passed,  the  Japanese 
embraced  the  opportunity  to  enter  the  general 
competitive  field  and  started  grocery  stores,  laun- 
dries, restaurants,  shoe  shops,  and  the  like,  pri- 
marily for  white  patrons. 

Increasing  Number  of  Business  Establishments. 
— Beginning  practically  with  a well-defined  stream 
of  immigration,  the  number  of  Japanese  places  of 
business  increased  rapidly.  This  is  especially  so 
during  the  years  subsequent  to  1904,  when  the 
number  of  places  of  business  increased  consider- 
ably more  rapidly  than  the  Japanese  population. 
The  Immigration  Commission  presented  data  to 
show  the  rapid  increase  which  had  taken  place  in 
Seattle  and  some  other  cities  ^ previous  to  1909. 
At  that  time  it  was  estimated  that  10,000  or  11,000, 

^ In  the  several  reports  on  the  Japanese  in  city  employments  and 
business  in  the  principal  cities  of  the  Pacific  Coast  and  Rocky  Moun- 
tain states,  Vol.  23. 


58 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 


or  even  more,  were  engaged  in  business  for  them- 
selves in  the  Western  states,  or  were  employed  by 
those  who  were  thus  occupied,  or  were  professional 
men  and  craftsmen  working  on  their  own  account. 
San  Francisco  headed  a list  of  cities  with  545  places 
of  business ; Seattle  had  478  ; Los  Angeles,  473  ; 
Sacramento,  209  ; Fresno,  107  ; and  other  places 
reported  smaller  numbers.^  The  California  Com- 
missioner of  Labor  as  a result  of  his  fairly  complete 
census  made  in  the  seven  most  important  cities  in 
1909,  reported  2,548  business  establishments  con- 
ducted by  Japanese  in  the  one  state.  Perhaps 
the  total  number  in  the  West  was  then  not  far 
from  4,000.  In  spite  of  the  fact  that  those  branches 
of  business  dependent  primarily  upon  recently 
arrived  immigrants  have  waned  during  the  last 
few  years,  the  number  of  establishments  has  in- 
creased. This  is  one  notable  instance  of  the  ad- 
vance made  by  the  Japanese  in  business. 

The  Results  of  Two  Investigations.  — The  result 
of  the  extensive  investigations  of  Japanese  business 
made  by  the  Immigration  Commission  and  the 
California  Labor  Commissioner  ^ may  be  intro- 
duced here  so  far  as  significant.  More  recent 
developments  as  gained  from  my  limited  observa- 
tions and  investigations  may  then  be  indicated. 

Numerous  Establishments  but  Most  of  them 
Small.  — The  summary  statement  presented  by  the 

^ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  100. 

^ The  general  tables  compiled  by  the  Commissioner  have  been 
published  in  the  Fourteenth  Biennial  Report  (1911-12),  pp.  604- 
632. 


59 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Immigration  Commission  is  of  especial  interest.^ 
It  pointed  out  first,  in  accord  with  what  has  already 
been  said,  “ that  most  of  the  Japanese  business 
establishments  have  been  started  in  recent  years ; 
that  the  number  in  the  large  cities  serving  as  supply 
centers  has  rapidly  increased ; and  that  a few 
establishments  have  been  started  in  many  smaller 
places  as  well.”  Of  more  importance  is  noted  the 
fact  ” that  with  comparatively  few  exceptions  the 
Japanese  business  establishments  are  small,  em- 
ploying comparatively  little  capital,  being  con- 
ducted with  the  assistance  of  comparatively  few 
employees,  and  having  a comparatively  small 
volume  of  annual  transactions.”  The  situation  in 
the  other  states  was  not  different  from  that  in  Cali- 
fornia, for  which  the  Commissioner  of  Labor  pre- 
sents acceptable  statistics.  The  capital  of  68.7  per 
cent  of  the  2,548  establishments  investigated  by  him 
was  less  than  $1,000,  and  55.3  per  cent  of  them  were 
carried  on  by  the  proprietor  or  proprietors,  and 
possibly  their  wives,  without  hired  assistance.  The 
total  amount  of  capital  employed  was  $4,075,226 ; 
of  annual  transactions,  $16,114,407,  which  gives  an 
average  of  capital  somewhat  less  than  $1,600,  and 
of  transactions,  about  $6,300  per  establishment.^ 
The  total  number  of  persons  engaged,  proprietors 
and  employees,  was  6,556,  an  average  of  a little 
less  than  2.5  per  establishment.  These  figures  are 
confirmed  in  a general  way  by  those  published  in 

1 Reports,  Vol.  23,  pp.  102  et  seq. 

2 The  writer  has  good  reason  to  believe  that  the  amount  of  capital 
and  volume  of  business  were  frequently  exaggerated.  The  follow- 

60 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

the  Japanese- American  Yearbook,  for  the  year 
July  I,  1908  to  June  30,  1909.^  The  aggregate 
capital  of  the  2,938  establishments  reported 
amounted  to  $4,816,573,  their  transactions, 
$13,020,462.  The  number  of  persons  connected 
with  these  establishments  was  estimated  at  7,038, 
an  average  of  2.4  per  establishment.  Thus  it  is 
evident  that  most  of  these  places  were  conducted 
by  a single  proprietor  or  by  him  and  his  wife,  or 
by  two  partners,  with  little  capital,  and  that  ex- 
aggerated importance  might  easily  be  attached  to 
the  number  of  shops  and  other  places  reported. 
The  fact  is  that  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  busi- 
ness carried  on  in  the  several  localities,  most  of 
them  were  small  and  inconsequential  affairs. 

Most  of  the  Wants  of  Japanese  provided  for  by 
their  Countrymen.  “ American  ” Business.  — The 

ing  summary  table  has  been  compiled  for  seven  California  cities 
from  the  Fourteenth  Biennial  Report  of  the  Commissioner  of  Labor. 


City 

No.  or 
Estab- 
lish- 
ments 

Individ- 

ual 

Con- 

cerns 

Part- 

nership 

Con- 

cerns 

Cor- 

pora- 

tions 

Capital 

Employed 

Annual 

Transactions 

San  Francisco 

497 

331 

142 

24 

$1,384,005 

$6,479,729 

Los  Angeles 

505 

395 

97 

13 

802,965 

3.069,193 

Oakland 

178 

132 

40 

6 

140,520 

551,950 

Sacramento 

154 

129 

22 

3 

184,890 

686,740 

Fresno 

lOI 

81 

16 

4 

271,115 

1,550,920 

San  Jose 

79 

70 

8 

I 

103,700 

161,862 

Stockton 

54 

46 

8 

0 

55,005 

232,700 

Summary  to- 
tals (all  places) 

2,548 

L934 

550 

64 

$4,075,226 

$16,114,407 

1 See  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  pp.  101-102. 

61 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


third  observation  made  by  the  Immigration  Com- 
mission was,  however,  “ That  in  the  large  cities 
where  there  are  many  Japanese  there  are  many 
branches  of  business  and  professions  represented, 
so  that  because  of  clannishness,  convenience  in 
point  of  location  and  language,  and  the  character 
of  the  goods  carried  in  stock,  as  well  as  because  of 
a feeling  of  opposition  toward  the  Asiatics,  with 
the  result  that  they  are  not  welcomed  at  white 
establishments  engaged  in  personal  service,  the 
maj'ority  of  the  wants  of  the  Japanese  are  met  by 
their  countrymen  engaged  in  business  and  the 
professions.”  ^ The  fourth  observation  was  ” that 

^ The  variety  and  general  character  of  the  places  of  business  are 
shown  by  the  following  table  presented  by  the  Immigration  Com- 
mission, Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  100 : 


Kind  of  Business 

Seattle 

Tacoma 

Portland 

San  Francisco 

Sacramento 

Fresno 

Los  Angeles 

(a)  Stores  and  Shops 

Art  and  curio  

12 

5 

4 

42 

I 

— 

15 

Book  and  drug  stores  . . . 

4 

— 

— 

14 

4 

2 

8 

Fruit  and  vegetables  . . . 

— 

3 

— 

8 

— 

— 

20 

Furnishing  

— 

— 

— 

13 

9 

— 

— 

Importing  and  exporting  . 

— 

— 

— 

5 

— 

— 

— 

Meat  and  fish 

5 

— 

I 

5 

3 

4 

3 

Provision  and  supply  . . . 

26 

— 

8 

22 

12 

4 

27 

Sake  (liquor) 

2 

— 

— 

7 

— 

— 

5 

Watch  and  jewelry  . . 

7 

— 

I 

8 

4 

6 

5 

(&)  Personal  Service 

Barber  shops 

46 

9 

10 

18 

26 

12 

44 

62 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 


while  many  of  the  Japanese  establishments  have 
been  called  into  existence  primarily  to  meet  the 
needs  of  the  members  of  their  race,  others  have 
been  started,  chiefly  in  recent  years,  for  ‘ American 


Kind  of  Business 

Seattle 

Tacoma 

Portland 

San  Francisco 

Sacramento 

Fresno 

Los  Angeles 

Bath  houses 

26 

5 

13 

13 

7 

4 

26 

Hotels,  boarding  and  lodging 
houses 

72 

8 

12 

51 

37 

12 

90 

Laundries 

37 

6 

2 

19 

6 

5 

7 

Restaurants  (American  meals) 

36 

5 

14 

17 

8 

5 

25 

Restaurants  (Japanese  meals) 

51 

7 

II 

33 

28 

15 

58 

Tailoring,  dyeing,  and  dress- 
making   

45 

3 

2 

52 

6 



16 

(c)  Amusements 
Moving-picture  shows  . . . 









I 

2 

I 

Pool  and  billiard  parlors  and 
shooting  galleries  . . . 

25 

4 

4 

28 

15 

10 

33 

{d)  Others 

Bamboo  shops 







7 





I 

Banks  

3 

— 

— 

I 

I 

2 

I 

Confectioners  

5 

— 

I 

4 

4 

— 

— 

Contractors 

— 

2 

12 

— 

— 

Employment  agents  . . . 

17 

I 

2 

12 

4 

— 

7 

Embroidery 

— 

— 

— 

3 

— 

— 

— 

Expressmen 

10 

3 

2 

5 

6 

— 

10 

Florists  

— 

— 

— 

4 

— 

— 

— 

Job  printing  shops  . . . 

7 

— 

— 

5 

2 

— 

2 

Magazines  and  newspapers  . 

12 

— 

I 

6 

I 

— 

7 

Photograph  galleries  . . . 

5 

I 

— 

8 

3 

— 

6 

Rice  mills 

— 

— 

2 



— 

Shoe  stores  and  cobbler  shops 

5 

— 

I 

76 

3 

2 

17 

Tofu  makers 

— ■ 

— 

I 

2 

3 

— 

3 

Miscellaneous 

20 

3 

5 

43 

15 

22 

35 

Total 

478 

63 

97 

545 

209 

107 

473 

63 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

trade,’  and  are  patronized  largely  and  almost  ex- 
clusively by  white  persons.”  It  reported  with 
reference  to  Seattle  that  some  of  the  grocers,  and 
most  of  the  45  tailors  and  dyers,  the  12  curio 
dealers,  the  7 watch  makers,  the  5 shoe  repairers, 
the  5 fish  markets,  the  36  restaurants  serving 
American  meals,  the  46  barber  shops,  and  the  37 
laundries  (the  smaller  hand  laundries  excepted) 
were  the  exception  to  the  general  rule,  in  that  a 
very  large  percentage  of  their  patrons  were  white 
people.  Much  the  same  was  found  to  be  true  in 
the  other  cities  where  an  intensive  investigation 
was  made. 

Underbidding  through  Lower  Prices.  — Of  most 
interest,  the  Commission  reported  ” that  rather 
frequently,  in  competing  with  white  establishments, 
the  Japanese  have  underbid  through  a lower  scale 
of  prices,”  ” but  that  because  of  organized  opposi- 
tion in  some  instances,  and  of  the  small  number  of 
Japanese  establishments  as  compared  to  those  con- 
ducted by  other  races,  the  trades  which  have  been 
seriously  affected  by  Japanese  competition  in  most 
cities,  have  been  few.” 

The  terms  on  which  Japanese  have  competed 
with  others  are  of  special  interest,  for  they  are 
significant  of  what  would  be  expected  to  happen 
with  a considerable  immigration  and  with  slow 
occupational  advance  in  this  country.  The  in- 
vestigations made  by  the  Immigration  Commission 
established  the  fact  that  there  was  or  had  been 
some  underbidding  as  a rule  on  the  part  of  the 
Japanese  proprietors  of  barber  shops,  laundries, 

64 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

grocery  stores,  cleaning  and  dyeing  establishments, 
and  shoe-repairing  shops.  This  underbidding  was 
made  possible  because  of  lower  wages  paid  em- 
ployees, longer  hours  sometimes  worked,  and  will- 
ingness on  the  part  of  the  proprietors  to  accept  less 
profit  than  their  white  competitors.  There  is  some 
relation  between  the  wages  they  might  have  earned 
and  the  amount  of  profit  they  must  realize  from  the 
business  conducted  by  them.  This  gave  a lower 
standard  of  profit  and  uneven  terms  of  competition. 

Japanese  Laundries.  — As  the  result  of  a rapid 
development  there  were,  in  1909,  75  laundries  in 
Seattle,  Tacoma,  Sacramento,  San  Francisco,  and 
Los  Angeles.  The  number  of  persons  employed, 
including  proprietors,  was  perhaps  950.  Most  of 
the  establishments  were  hand  laundries,  but  a few 
were  operated  by  steam  and  employed  upwards 
of  25  men.  An  investigation  brought  out  the  fact 
that  the  prices  charged  by  Japanese  had  frequently 
been  less  than  those  charged  by  white  laundrymen 
of  various  races  and  French  hand  laundrymen  in 
San  Francisco,  that  Japanese  were  employed  almost 
exclusively  in  laundries  conducted  by  their  country- 
men, and  that  while  they  worked  more  hours  per 
day,  their  wages  were  smaller  in  1909  than  those 
paid  to  persons  employed  in  white  steam  laundries 
and  to  those  employed  in  French  hand  laundries 
in  San  Francisco.  The  Immigration  Commission 
reported : 

“In  Seattle,  San  Francisco,  and  Los  Angeles  the 
agents  investigated  the  wages  and  hours  of  work 

65 


F 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

in  white  as  well  as  in  Japanese  laundries.  The 
hours  are  rather  irregular  and  vary  greatly,  but 
in  general  it  may  be  said  that  in  Seattle  those  of 
the  Japanese  laundries  are  regularly  from  66  to 
69  per  week,  as  against  55  to  60  in  white  steam 
laundries.  The  corresponding  figures  for  Los  An- 
geles were  8|  per  day  for  the  larger  steam  laundries 
and  10  per  day  for  the  small  hand  laundries  and 
those  conducted  by  Japanese  — all  with  over- time 
each  week.  In  San  Francisco  the  hours  per  week 
in  Japanese  laundries  varied  from  60  to  72,  in  6 
French  laundries,  from  50  to  63,  while  in  union- 
ized white  steam  laundries  they  were  49  per  week.” 

“Practically  all  of  the  Japanese  laborers  receive 
board  and  lodging  in  addition  to  wages.  This,  to- 
gether with  different  periods  for  the  payment  of 
wages,  makes  it  difficult  to  compare  the  wages  of 
different  classes  of  laundry  employees.  In  San 
Francisco,  however,  the  average  wage  of  89  Japanese 
male  employees  was  $28.90  per  month  ; of  32  men 
and  20  women  employed  in  French  laundries  with 
board  and  room  and  lodging  $37.69  and  $33.18  re- 
spectively ; of  52  men  and  65  women  employed  in 
other  French  laundries,  without  board  and  lodging, 
$48.56  and  $40.53,  respectively  ; of  140  men  and  204 
women  employed  in  white  steam  laundries,  these 
also  without  board  and  lodging,  $69.74  and  $44.33, 
respectively.  It  is  evident  that  if  allowance  is 
made  for  the  value  of  board  (it  costs  the  Jap- 
anese employer  from  $8  to  $10  per  month),  the 
wages  of  the  Japanese  are  lower  for  a longer  work 
day  than  those  paid  to  employees  of  competing 
French  and  white  steam  laundries.  Similar  dif- 
ferences, though  less  great,  were  found  to  prevail 
in  the  wages  paid  to  these  classes  of  laundry  workers 

66 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

in  Seattle  and  Los  Angeles  and  in  other  places 
where  the  details  as  to  wages  were  ascertained.”  ^ 

Anti- Jap  Laundry  Leagues.  — The  increase  in 
the  number  of  Japanese  laundries,  the  increase  in 
their  size,  the  improvement  in  their  methods  and 
equipment,  and  the  expansion  of  their  business, 
though  its  volume  was  in  no  large  city  more  than  a 
small  percentage  of  the  whole,  together  with  the 
comparatively  low  rates  of  wages  which  prevailed  in 
the  Japanese  laundries,  were  sufficient  to  cause  the 
white  laundrymen  to  fear  their  competition  and  in 
some  places  to  organize  in  order  to  limit  it.  The 
organization  of  several  ” anti- Jap  laundry  leagues  ” 
in  California  was  not  entirely  without  reason,  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  most  of  the  competition  was 
between  Japanese  and  French  laundries.  Of  course 
this  statement  does  not  carry  with  it  approval  of  all 
the  methods  employed  by  those  organizations. 
In  order  to  diminish  the  patronage  of  the  Japanese 
establishments,  lists  of  their  patrons  were  pre- 
pared, and  appeals  were  made  in  person,  by  card,  or 
by  letter  to  them,  to  discontinue  sending  laundry 
to  the  Asiatics.  Extravagant  billboard  advertis- 
ing, making  appeals  along  the  same  lines,  was  also 
resorted  to.  At  the  same  time,  these  leagues  were 
active  in  preventing  the  granting  of  the  necessary 
permits  to  Japanese  to  operate  steam  laundries, 
and  by  appeal  or  threat  of  boycott,  the  cooperation 
of  some  of  the  laundry  supply  houses  was  gained, 
with  the  result  that  some  of  the  Japanese  pro- 

* Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  pp.  119-121. 

67 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


prietors  experienced  difficulty  in  securing  needed 
supplies. 

Other  Trades.  — Except  for  the  absence  of  or- 
ganized opposition,  the  story  of  the  restaurants 
serving  “ American  meals  ” is  very  much  the  same 
as  that  of  the  laundries.  Underbidding  by  Japanese 
barbers  troubled  their  white  competitors  in  some 
places  also.  This  was  notably  the  case  in  Seattle, 
where  the  union  prices  usual  in  the  West  had  to  be 
lowered  to  meet  Japanese  competition  at  lower 
prices.  This  underbidding  did  not  end  until  July, 
1909.  The  chief  complaint  of  the  white  barbers 
was,  however,  that  many  Japanese  shops  had  been 
established  with  the  result  that  the  trade  was 
shared  among  a greater  number.  The  business  of 
pressing  and  dyeing  of  clothes  in  one  part  of  Seattle 
is  the  same  story  over  again.  In  California  many 
Japanese  shoe  repairers  were  found.  They  were 
thoroughly  organized  into  a union  which  advanced 
aid  when  needed,  provided  supplies  at  an  advance 
of  ten  per  cent  over  cost,  and  made  rules  as  to  the 
location  of  Japanese  shops.  The  prices  charged  by 
these  cobblers  were  generally  somewhat  less  than 
the  prices  charged  by  white  cobblers  in  the  same 
neighborhoods. 

Provision  and  Grocery  Stores.  — Japanese  provi- 
sion and  grocery  stores  were  investigated  by  the 
Immigration  Commission  in  Seattle,  Sacramento, 
and  Los  Angeles.  Most  of  their  business  was  with 
Japanese  who  purchased  the  greater  part  of  their 
articles  of  food  from  them,  and  a good  many  of 
their  sales  were  of  goods  of  Japanese  origin.  Thus 

68 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

taking  the  stores  investigated  in  California  by  the 
Commissioner  of  Labor,  51.9  per  cent  of  their  goods 
came  from  Japan,  47.8  per  cent  were  produced  in 
the  United  States,  while  0.3  per  cent  came  from 
other  countries.  But  along  with  the  stores  con- 
ducted primarily  for  Japanese  patrons,  were  an 
increasing  number  which  were  designed  for  so- 
called  “ American  trade.”  This  was  especially 
true  in  Seattle  and  Sacramento,  and  in  both  of  these 
places  there  was  some  complaint  of  underselling 
by  the  Japanese.  Except  in  Sacramento  the  shops 
were  small,  their  patronage  local,  and  their  com- 
petition with  similar  small  shops  conducted  by  the 
Greeks,  Slavs,  and  other  members  of  the  ” new  im- 
migrant ” races.  It  was  found  that  though  the 
item  of  rent  was  greater  in  the  Japanese  expense 
account,  they  had  an  advantage  over  their  competi- 
tors in  the  cost  of  clerk  hire. 

Serious  Competition  limited  to  a Few  Instances. 
— Thus,  while  it  may  be  said  that  the  numerous 
Japanese  establishments  were,  for  the  most  part, 
small,  the  volume  of  transactions  not  large,  and 
most  of  the  business  done  with  Japanese,  so  that  the 
instances  of  any  serious  competition  with  others 
were  few,  it  is  a significant  fact  that  where  there 
was  competition  it  was  not  or  had  not  been,  as  a rule, 
on  equal  terms.  The  rather  extensive  underbidding 
in  industrial  employments  of  an  earlier  time  was 
paralleled  by  a less  important  underbidding  in 
business.  The  wage  bill  was  that  paid  for  the 
cheaper  labor  of  Japanese  help  and  the  margin  of 
profit  required  was  smaller. 

69 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


Losses  of  White  Shopkeepers  caused  by  Popula- 
tion Changes.  — But  the  most  serious  loss  actu- 
ally sustained  by  white  shopkeepers  in  such  places 
as  Seattle,  Sacramento,  and  Los  Angeles,  were 
incidental  to  the  changes  which  the  population 
underwent.  As  the  Japanese  moved  into  a locality 
others  tended  strongly  to  move  out,  and  inasmuch 
as  most  of  the  more  common  dealings  of  the  new- 
comers were  with  the  shopkeepers  of  their  own 
race,  the  white  shopkeepers  had  fewer  and  fewer 
patrons.  Most  of  the  grocery  stores,  barber  shops, 
and  small  restaurants  conducted  by  white  men  have 
been  closed  in  the  districts  populated  by  Japanese, 
as  their  white  patrons  moved  away.  As  the  Immi- 
gration Commission  stated  in  its  summary : 

“ In  some  instances  the  changes  in  the  character 
of  the  population  resulting  from  the  settlement  of 
Japanese,  who  trade  chiefly  at  shops  conducted 
by  their  countrymen,  have  seriously  affected  the 
business  of  shopkeepers  and  others  located  in  or 
near  Japanese  colonies.” 

Formation  of  Japanese  Colonies.  — A brief  state- 
ment should  be  made  about  the  formation  of  the 
colonies  in  which  most  of  the  Japanese  residing  in 
urban  communities  live.  In  most  communities 
they  are  discriminated  against.  It  has  been  at 
times  difficult  for  official  representatives  of  the 
Japanese  government  and  well-to-do  business  men 
of  this  race  to  secure  suitable  dwellings.  The  rank 
and  file  have  been  both  forced  and  led  into  the 
sections  of  the  city  where  rents  were  low,  but,  as  a 
rule,  where  houses  were  being  vacated  for  better 

70 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

ones  elsewhere.  Once  a group  has  been  formed, 
common  language,  acquaintance,  shops,  and  amuse- 
ment places  cause  other  Japanese  to  join  it.  Avail- 
able buildings  then  command  high  rents  so  far  as  the 
colony  spreads.  These  high  rents  and  prejudice,  in 
turn,  cause  other  races  to  move  elsewhere.  As  this 
shifting  process  takes  place,  the  values  and  rentals 
of  property  lying  near  the  “ Japanese  quarter  ” 
fall  because  of  little  demand  for  it,  until  it, 
too,  is  vacated  for  the  expansion  of  the  colony. 

Few  White  Persons  employed  by  Japanese. 
The  “living-in”  System.  — ■ As  would  be  expected, 
nearly  all  of  those  employed  in  Japanese  establish- 
ments have  been  Japanese.  The  proprietors  natu- 
rally prefer  their  countrymen  because  of  common 
language,  acquaintance,  and  race  bonds  and  because 
they  are  cheaper  help,  while  with  the  more  or  less 
strained  relations  which  have  obtained,  few  white 
persons  have  cared  to  work  in  Japanese  establish- 
ments, other  than  curio  stores  and,  perhaps,  res- 
taurants. The  California  Labor  Commissioner 
found  that  as  against  3,448  Japanese  employed  for 
wages  in  the  2,548  establishments  investigated  by 
him,  there  were  only  35  white  men  and  26  white 
women.  As  would  be  expected,  also,  when  there 
were  comparatively  few  Japanese  families  and  the 
single  men  who  worked  for  wages  must  be  boarded 
and  sheltered  by  their  countrymen,  the  “ living-in” 
system  generally  prevailed.  Thus  the  California 
Labor  Commissioner  found  that  69.9  per  cent  of  the 
Japanese  establishments  provided  lodging  for  their 
Japanese  help.  These  were  usually  in  the  rear  or 

71 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

over  the  place  of  business  — store,  barber  shop, 
laundry,  or  pool  room.  Thus  the  Japanese  quarter 
has  been  one  chiefly  of  small  stores,  shops,  pool  halls, 
restaurants,  and  boarding  houses,  and  most  of  the 
Japanese  have  lived  in  the  boarding  houses  or  in  the 
rear  of  or  over  the  places  of  business. 

Housing  Conditions.  — The  agents  of  the  Immi- 
gration Commission  and  of  the  California  Labor 
Commissioner  found  there  had  been  much  un- 
warranted criticism  of  the  conditions  under  which 
the  Japanese  were  housed.  The  furnishings  were 
as  good  or  better  than  in  the  ordinary  immigrant 
quarter  in  the  West,  and  better  than  in  the  immi- 
grant quarter  of  Eastern  cities.  From  the  point  of 
view  of  cleanliness  and  sanitation,  their  condition 
was  superior  to  that  of  other  races  similarly  circum- 
stanced. The  California  Commissioner  of  Labor 
reported  with  reference  to  sanitary  conditions  that 
1,877  Japanese  establishments  were  “ good,”  387 
were  ” fair,”  and  only  31  were  “ bad.”  Of  the 
lodgings,  1,392  were  “good,”  556  were  “fair,”  while 
86  were  “ bad.”  The  proportions  thus  shown  would 
apply  at  that  time  to  the  Japanese  in  the  cities  of 
other  Western  states  than  California. 

This  is  the  situation  as  it  had  developed  and  as  it 
obtained  in  1909.  What  changes  have  been  wit- 
nessed in  the  subsequent  five  years  of  restricted 
immigration  ? 

Changes  since  1909.  — There  has  been  some 
gain  in  number  of  establishments  conducted,  in 
spite  of  a slowly  decreasing  number  of  adult 
Japanese  in  the  country.  The  increase  in  capital 

72 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

and  business  transacted  has  been  greater  than  the 
increase  in  the  number  of  establishments.  The 
number  of  important  shops  has  perceptibly  in- 
creased and  the  number  of  small  ones  has  not 
noticeably  diminished.  In  places  like  Denver, 
Salt  Lake  City,  Ogden,  Fresno,  and  San  Francisco, 
where  the  population  has  been  almost  stationary  or 
has  fallen  off,  many  small  establishments  have 
become  bankrupt  and  little  or  no  gain  has  been 
made.  The  restriction  of  immigration  has  seriously 
injured  many  lines  of  business  in  these  supply 
centers.  In  Sacramento,  Los  Angeles,  and  Seattle, 
on  the  other  hand,  conditions  have  been  more 
favorable  and  a very  considerable  advance  has 
been  made,  especially  in  the  larger  places  securing 
more  or  less  “ American  trade.” 

Expansion  of  Business  in  Los  Angeles.  — The 
greatest  expansion  of  business  has  taken  place  in 
Los  Angeles.  The  number  of  establishments  has 
increased  by  fully  fifty  per  cent  and  the  amount  of 
capital  invested  and  business  transacted  by  perhaps 
two  hundred  per  cent.  While  an  increasing  number 
of  restaurants  have  been  started  in  different  loca- 
tions to  secure  white  patronage,  most  of  East  ist 
Street  and  one  or  two  cross  streets,  which  several 
years  ago  were  shared  by  others  and  the  Japanese, 
are  now  occupied  very  generally  by  Japanese 
establishments.  The  general  appearance  of  the 
community  is  much  better  than  it  was  five  years 
ago.  A number  of  the  general  stores  are  very 
good  ones  indeed,  the  barber  shops  have  expanded 
in  some  cases  from  two  to  four  or  more  chairs,  two 

73 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


first-class  tailoring  establishments  have  appeared, 
two  very  good  hotels  have  been  erected  and  are 
patronized  by  others  as  well  as  by  Japanese,  and 
several  of  the  boarding  houses  are  in  very  good 
buildings  and  are  well  furnished.  Taken  as  a whole, 
the  stores  and  shops  look  better  than  those  of  white 
men,  mostly  foreign-born,  in  the  same  section  of  the 
city.  This  is  especially  true  of  the  barber  shops. 
All  of  them  appear  to  have  recently  been  papered 
and  repaired  and  are  scrupulously  clean.  The  big 
impression  made  on  the  investigator,  who  has  had 
the  fortune  to  see  the  Los  Angeles  Japanese  quarter, 
is  that  the  members  of  this  race  are  just  as  efficient 
in  business  as  they  are  in  intensive  farming  and 
in  many  branches  of  labor.  Sacramento,  Seattle, 
and  some  other  places  deepen  this  impression.  In 
this  is  found  the  most  significant  change  effected 
during  the  last  five  years. 

Gain  in  American  Trade ; More  Trading  by 
Japanese  at  American  Stores.  — Of  course  the 
amount  of  non-Japanese  patronage  of  these  business 
establishments  has  increased  with  time  and  with 
the  improvements  in  the  stocks  of  goods  and  busi- 
ness methods.  Certainly  the  proportion  of  Ameri- 
can patronage  is  considerably  larger  than  it  was  five 
years  ago.  On  the  other  hand,  however,  there  is 
much  evidence  that  the  clannishness  of  the  Japanese 
is  breaking  down  where  public  opinion  will  permit 
it.  In  Los  Angeles,  Sacramento,  and  some  other 
places,  one  now  sees  many  Japanese  entering  and 
leaving  the  large  department  stores  located  on  the 
best  business  streets.  Five  years  ago  it  was  not  so. 

74 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 


The  testimony  of  the  merchants  is  that  the  J apanese 
are  good  customers  and  buy  things  of  good  quality. 
Of  course  in  the  case  of  personal  service,  they  still 
patronize  the  Japanese  barber  shops,  the  Japanese 
restaurants,  and  the  Japanese  pool  hall,  for  they  are 
very  generally  discriminated  against  in  all  but  the 
more  “ exclusive  ” places  where  high  prices  draw 
the  line  against  all  but  a few. 

Standards  of  Living  have  improved.  Better 
Wages.  — The  J apanese  are  living  better  than  they 
did.  The  many  women  who  have  come  have  im- 
proved the  housekeeping,  while  time  has  greatly 
changed  the  average  man’s  standards  in  regard  to  liv- 
ing quarters.^  The  observance  of  better  standards 
than  formerly  obtained,  and  better  than  observed 
by  most  others  in  the  same  sections  of  these  Western 
cities,  has  been  made  possible  by  better  earnings. 
The  wages  paid  in  laundries,  stores,  and  elsewhere 
are  considerably  higher  than  they  were  before  the 
agreement  made  a difference  in  the  number  of  new 
immigrants.  And  with  this  increase  in  wages  a 
great  part  of  the  advantage  the  Japanese  once  had 
in  competing  with  other  business  men  has  been  lost, 
and  the  instances  of  underbidding  have  become 
comparatively  few.  Everywhere  the  prices  charged 
by  J apanese  barbers  were  found  to  have  come  to  the 
scale  charged  at  the  better  white  shops  and  to  be 
higher  than  those  charged  at  the  poor  shops  con- 

* Mr.  Kawakami’s  statement  {Asia  at  the  Door,  p.  126)  that  “ In 
fairness  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  Japanese  quarter  in  any 
American  city  is  as  sanitary  and  clean  as  any  foreign  district,  if 
not  much  more  so,”  is  strictly  true. 

75 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

ducted  near  by  by  white  immigrants.  In  Seattle 
the  Barbers’  Union  has  voted  to  admit  the  Japanese 
barbers  to  membership  if  the  national  organization 
will  change  its  constitution  so  as  to  permit  it,  and 
working  relations  have  been  entered  into  in  some 
other  places.  The  same  is  equally  true,  so  far  as 
prices  are  concerned,  of  most  other  shops  — clean- 
ing and  dyeing,  shoe  repairing,  etc.  — and  of  res- 
taurants serving  American  meals.  With  one  ex- 
ception, little  complaint  was  heard  of  underbidding 
by  store-keepers  and  laundrymen.  The  Anti-Jap 
Laundry  League  of  San  Francisco,  it  is  true,  still 
protests  against  underbidding,  alleged  bad  sanitary 
conditions,  and  the  like,  as  of  old  ; but  the  main 
reason  for  the  continued  opposition  is  found  in  the 
feeling  that  the  fight  must  be  kept  up  because  of  an 
immigration  problem  presumed  to  be  lurking  in  the 
background,  if  not  in  the  fact  that  it  makes  jobs 
with  salaries  attached.  It  is  increasingly  difficult  to 
secure  money  to  pay  the  expenses  of  the  organization. 
Most  of  the  other  laundry  leagues  have  disbanded. 

Changing  Opinions.  Opposition  in  Seattle.  — 
The  feeling  on  the  part  of  the  business  men  in  general 
seems  to  have  waxed  or  waned  according  to  whether 
or  not  the  Japanese  have  continued  to  make  prog- 
ress. In  those  cities  where  no  advance  is  being 
made,  they  have  little  to  say.  In  Los  Angeles,  on 
the  other  hand,  considerable  feeling  against  the 
Japanese  has  developed.  One  rather  frequently 
hears  the  remark  that  “ the  Japanese  are  all  right 
as  farmers  and  laborers,  but  they  are  not  satisfied 
with  that.  They  crowd  into  and  compete  for 

76 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  WESTERN  CITIES 

business.”  Yet  outside  of  the  active  trade  union 
opposition  in  San  Francisco  (and  with  changed 
conditions  this  is  less  active  than  five  years  ago) , no 
very  active  opposition  is  now  found  except  in 
Seattle.  While  the  laboring  men  in  that  city  are 
giving  evidence  of  accepting  the  Japanese  under 
present  conditions  and  restrictions,  admitting  them 
to  the  Timber  Workers’  Union,  voting  to  admit  them 
to  the  Barbers’  Union  if  permitted  to  do  so,  and 
discussing  admission  in  two  other  unions,  the  retail 
grocers  have  recently  been  trying  to  rid  themselves 
of  new  competition.  In  recent  years  the  Japanese 
have  entered  the  general  competitive  field  in  the 
grocery  trade  and  now  have  upwards  of  twenty 
groceries  outside  of  the  ” Japanese  quarter  ” 
bounded  by  Yesler  Way.  These  are  scattered 
throughout  the  city  and  are  designed  for  the  Ameri- 
can trade.  The  white  grocers  have  complained  of 
the  cutting  of  prices.  Japanese  tell  me  that  it  has 
been  practiced  to  some  extent,  but  that  the  difficulty 
experienced  by  the  white  grocers  has  been  due 
chiefly  to  the  competition  of  the  exceptionally  fine 
public  markets  which  are  more  and  more  extensively 
patronized,  and  in  which  the  prices  of  meats,  vege- 
tables, and  provisions  are  low.  Whatever  the  reason 
for  the  difficulty  experienced  may  have  been,  it  is 
true  that  there  has  been  competition  for  white 
trade  by  newly  opened  stores  and  some  cutting  of 
prices,  and  that  the  Retail  Grocers’  Association 
began  active  opposition  to  the  Japanese.  A few 
months  ago  the  cooperation  of  the  wholesale  grocers 
was  sought,  and  whether  because  of  fear  of  boycott 

77 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


or  of  sympathy,  with  a prospect  of  success,  until 
it  became  evident  that  the  Japanese  stores  would 
secure  the  necessary  stocks  of  goods  from  wholesale 
grocers  in  Tacoma  and  elsewhere.  The  plan  to 
boycott  was  then  abandoned.  The  opposition, 
however,  has  not  ceased.  It  has  only  failed  to  find 
a practicable  method  of  becoming  effective.  The 
Trade  Register  suggests  that  the  President  and 
Congress  should  be  petitioned  so  to  amend  treaties 
and  statutes  as  “to  prevent  all  members  of  all 
colored  races,  except  American  Indians  and  negroes 
born  in  the  United  States,  from  becoming  citizens 
of  this  country  or  engaging  in  business  in  any 
capacity  in  the  United  States  in  competition  with  a 
citizen  of  this  country.”  To  this  is  added  that 
“ petitions  could  be  placed  upon  the  counters  of  all 
merchants  in  the  Pacific  Coast  and  Rocky  Mountain 
states  who  are  materially  affected  by  the  competi- 
tion involved,  and  with  their  cooperation  and  that  of 
the  various  organizations  of  farmers,  fishermen,  min- 
ers, and  other  classes  of  people  concerned  in  those 
states,  it  ought  not  to  be  difficult  to  obtain  enough 
signatures  to  secure  the  desired  federal  action.”  ^ 

The  Level  of  Competition  and  Opposition.  — The 
level  of  competition  has  been  an  important  factor 
in  the  very  general  opposition  Asiatics  have  met 
with  in  different  countries  of  the  world.  Active 
opposition  appears  in  one  division  of  society  after 
the  other,  as  competition,  and  especially  unequal 
competition,  extends  to  its  field  of  economic  activity. 

1 Editorial  in  the  Trade  Register,  Seattle,  Washington,  Septem- 
ber 5,  1914. 

78 


CHAPTER  IV 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE  IN  WESTERN 
STATES  OTHER  THAN  CALIFORNIA 

Large  Proportion  of  Japanese  in  Agricultural 
Pursuits.  — Previous  to  1908,  when  the  volume  of 
immigration  was  largest,  the  great  majority  of  the 
Japanese  found  their  first  employment  as  railroad 
laborers,  as  agricultural  laborers,  or  in  domestic 
service,  using  the  term  in  its  broadest  sense.  Two 
fifths  or  more,  it  would  seem,  went  from  the  boarding 
house  to  field  or  orchard.  And  among  those  who 
became  railroad  laborers  and  miners,  there  has 
always  been  a strong  " back  current  ” into  agricul- 
tural pursuits,  especially  in  California.  At  the 
present  time  perhaps  not  far  from  one  half  of  those 
gainfully  occupied  are  agricultural  laborers,  gar- 
deners or  farmers,  at  least  part  of  the  year.  In  this 
branch  of  human  endeavor  their  greatest  contribu- 
tions have  been  made,  and  incidental  to  their 
activities  as  farmers  in  California  an  acute  situation 
has  recently  developed. 

Reasons  for  This.  — The  favor  with  which  agri- 
cultural employment  is  regarded  by  the  Japanese  is 
easily  explained.  Most  of  those  who  have  immi- 
grated came  from  the  farms  of  their  native  land. 
Every  race  shows  a tendency  sooner  or  later  to  rise 
in  the  adopted  country  to  the  position  occupied  at 

79 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

home,  and  the  more  ambitious  and  capable  the  race 
the  stronger  is  this  tendency.  It  has  been  very 
strong  among  the  Japanese  immigrants,  who  have 
great  respect  for  agriculture.  In  Japan  the  farmer 
has  been  ranked  higher  than  his  fellow  man  engaged 
in  trade  or  industry.  Because  of  the  meagerness 
of  natural  resources  and  the  necessity  of  the  most 
careful  husbandry,  the  agricultural  arts,  in  so  far 
as  labor  and  scientific  application  are  concerned, 
have  been  highly  developed.  So,  here  in  the 
adopted  country,  agriculture  has  carried  with  it 
station  in  life  and  has  given  opportunity  for  the 
application  of  the  best-developed  arts  possessed  by 
the  race.  Cooperating  with  these  facts,  it  is  in 
certain  branches  of  agriculture  that  the  best  re- 
muneration is  to  be  earned  by  the  laborer,  for  fre- 
quently he  has  an  opportunity  to  work  by  the  piece. 
Moreover,  it  leaves  him  the  greatest  amount  of 
initiative  and  frees  him  more  than  other  fields  of 
employment  from  rule  of  thumb  and  close  super- 
vision, which  are  distasteful  to  him.  Finally,  field, 
garden,  and  orchard  have  held  forth  to  him  the  best 
promise  of  establishing  his  independence,  for  it  is 
easier  for  the  average  Japanese  to  escape  the  wage 
relation  by  becoming  a farmer  than  in  any  other 
way. 

Much  is  to  be  said  concerning  the  Japanese  as 
agricultural  laborers  and  farmers  in  California. 
There  is  something  of  interest  and  importance, 
however,  to  be  said  concerning  them  in  these  con- 
nections in  Oregon,  Washington,  Idaho,  Utah,  and 
Colorado.  It  will  be  most  convenient  to  review 

8o 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 

the  situation  in  these  five  states  first  of  all  and 
then  to  deal  with  that  in  California  in  greater  detail. 

Progress  in  Idaho.  — In  Idaho,  Utah,  and  Colo- 
rado the  Japanese  began  their  operations  not  long 
ago  as  handworkers  in  the  sugar-beet  fields.  With 
this  as  a beginning,  they  have  made  some  advance. 
Yet  at  present  their  agricultural  operations  are 
connected  chiefly  with  the  growing  of  sugar  beets, 
potatoes,  tomatoes,  cabbages,  and  garden  truck,  all 
of  which  represent  intensive  agriculture  and  involve 
much  hand  labor.  The  beet-sugar  industry  in 
Idaho  dates  from  1903,  when  the  factory  at  Idaho 
Falls  was  opened.  At  present  there  are  three 
factories;  the  acreage  of  beets  harvested  in  1913 
was  18,108.  From  the  beginning  the  company 
operating  these  factories  has  brought  Japanese  to 
the  communities  to  do  much  if  not  most  of  the  work 
in  the  fields.  In  1909,  it  was  paying  a “ con- 
tractor” $i  per  acre  for  each  acre  worked  by  Japa- 
nese laborers,  plus  35  cents  per  acre  to  defray  part 
of  the  cost  of  transporting  laborers  to  the  com- 
munity. The  laborers  were  distributed  among  the 
growers  as  needed,  and  for  the  handwork  were 
paid  $20  per  acre  for  beets  running  twelve  tons  to 
the  acre,  with  a reduction  of  50  cents  for  each  ton 
under  twelve  and  an  addition  of  60  cents  per  ton  for 
each  ton  over  twelve.  The  Japanese  were  regarded 
as  necessary  to  the  industry,  but  were  adversely 
criticized  by  their  employers  as  prone  to  take  ad- 
vantage of  a bargain.  The  situation  has  not  greatly 
changed  since  1909.  The  transportation  subsidy 
of  35  cents  per  acre  has  been  eliminated  and 
G 81 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

“ bosses  ” have  changed,  but  the  Japanese  do  a 
good  share  of  the  handwork,  the  remuneration  is  the 
same,  and  the  adverse  criticism  has  not  changed. 
Yet  the  situation  is  not  altogether  unchanged. 
More  of  the  beets  have  been  grown  by  the  Japanese 
as  farmers  on  their  own  account,  and  they  have 
advanced  somewhat  so  that  they  do  more  of  the 
work  with  teams.  In  1909  Japanese  farmers  tilled 
4,922  acres  of  beets ; in  1913  they  tilled  7,773  acres 
or  between  35  and  40  per  cent  of  the  entire  crop.^ 
This  is  the  principal  crop  grown  by  them,  but  some 
10,380  acres  were  devoted  to  other  things.  The 
figure  corresponding  to  this  in  1909  was  2,150. 

In  Utah.  — What  has  been  said  concerning  sugar- 
beet  growing  in  Idaho,  might,  with  no  important 
amendment,  be  said  of  sugar-beet  growing  in  Utah. 
In  one  community  the  industry  has  from  the  first 
taken  its  place  as  a part  of  general  agriculture  and 
the  handwork  has  been  done  by  “ white  ” farmers 
and  their  “ white  ” farm  help.  But  there  are  now 
seven  sugar  factories  in  Utah,  and  in  all  of  the  con- 
tributory communities  save  the  one,  immigrant 
labor,  and  that  Japanese,  has  from  the  first  played 
an  important  part  in  the  handwork.  There  has 
been  no  noteworthy  change  since  the  Immigration 
Commission  made  its  extensive  investigation  five 
years  ago,  unless  it  is  in  the  increasing  acreage  of 
beets  grown  by  Japanese.  The  total  acreage  of 

1 From  data  furnished  by  the  consul  at  Portland.  This  includes 
some  tenures  excluded  by  the  Census  Bureau,  which  (Bulletin  127) 
gives  a total  acreage  for  the  Japanese  in  1910  of  only  2,812,  of 
which  750  were  devoted  to  the  production  of  sugar  beets. 

82 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 

beets  planted  in  Utah  in  1914  was  approximately 
40,000.  The  acreage  planted  by  Japanese  in  1914 
was  4,490.  In  1910  it  was  3,862.^  But  here  again, 
the  increased  acreage  of  other  crops  is  the  only 
important  superficial  fact  to  be  noted.  In  1910 
Japanese  farmers  had  2,159  acres  not  devoted  to 
the  production  of  sugar  beets.  Their  total  acreage 
is  now  possibly  9,000. 

In  Colorado.  — And,  save  for  the  German  Rus- 
sians and  Mexicans  as  competing  laborers  and 
growers,  the  same  things  might  be  said  with  little 
qualification  of  the  Japanese  and  the  beet-sugar 
industry  in  Colorado.  In  1909  the  Japanese  hand 
laborers  numbered  some  2,627  in  a total  of  more 
than  15,000,  but  because  of  their  greater  industry 
and  efficiency  — especially  as  compared  with  the 
Mexicans  and  the  German  Russian  women  and 
children  — they  did  considerably  more  than  one 
fifth  of  the  handwork.  The  situation  is  not  materi- 
ally different  to-day.  In  some  communities  they 
are  few  and  of  no  consequence  in  the  labor  supply ; 
in^others  they  do  most  of  the  work.  In  the  growing 
of  beets,  however,  they  have  made  a little  advance. 
In  1909  their  acreage  was  10,839.  1914  it  was 

I3>079-^  But  here,  again,  the  land  held  by  Japanese 
and  devoted  to  the  production  of  other  things  than 
sugar  beets  indicates  the  important  change  which 

1 Census  Bulletin  127. 

^ Aceording  to  an  investigation  recently  made  by  the  Japanese 
Association  of  Colorado.  The  figures  reported  for  1909  and  1914 
include  a large  number  of  contracts  not  included  under  leases  as 
the  term  is  employed  by  the  Census  Bureau. 

83 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


has  taken  place.  The  acreage  in  1909  was  some- 
thing over  6,852.1  In  1914  it  had  increased  to 
12,700.^ 

In  Colorado  the  Japanese  are  growing  a great 
many  cabbages  and  tomatoes  as  well  as  sugar  beets. 
In  Utah  they  are  growing  these  and  a considerable 
amount  of  garden  truck  for  the  Salt  Lake  City 
market.  In  Idaho  the  newest  and  best  land  is 
devoted  to  the  production  of  potatoes,  most  of  the 
other  to  seed  peas  and  beets.  The  situation  as  I 
found  it  north  of  Denver,  around  Brighton,  Fort 
Lupton,  and  other  towns  along  the  Union  Pacific 
Railroad  as  far  north  as  Greeley,  is  pretty  much  the 
same  as  in  other  parts  of  Colorado,  in  Utah,  and  in 
Idaho.  A statement  of  facts  observed  in  these 
Colorado  communities  will  serve  for  the  three  states. 

^ This  figure,  taken  from  the  report  of  the  Immigration  Commis- 
sion, does  not  include  a small  acreage  in  one  district  not  visited  by 
the  agents. 

2 The  following  summary  table  has  been  provided  by  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Japanese  Association  of  Colorado.  The  figures  are  for 
the  year  1914. 


Crop 

Acres  Leased 
FOR  Cash 

Acres  Leased 
ON  Shares 

Acres  Owned 

Sugar  beets 

3-435 

9,394 

250 

Wheat 

1.390 

2,294 

no 

Cantaloupes 

635 

1,381 

— 

Hay  (chiefly  alfalfa) 

2,433 

2,424 

20 

Cabbages 

730 

750 

50 

Vegetables  

150 

240 

50 

Fruit 

2 

13 

— 

Pasture  

10 

15 

3 

Totals 

8,785 

16,511 

483 

84 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 


Observations  in  Colorado.  — The  Japanese  are 
almost  all  tenant  farmers  with  one-year  leases. 
Some  are  paying  cash  rent,  others  a share  of  the 
crop.  Most  of  the  tenants  now  provide  most  of  the 
equipment  needed.  Nearly  all  are  growing  crops 
requiring  intensive  cultivation  and  a moderate 
amount  of  irrigation.  White  farmers  grow  the 
same  crops  to  a very  considerable  extent,  though  the 
Japanese  have  come  to  be  known  as  the  chief 
growers  of  cabbages  and  tomatoes  for  the  canneries. 
Their  land  is  well  tilled,  and  they  are  regarded  as 
good  farmers.  Here  and  there  several  adjacent 
farms  are  tenanted  by  Japanese;  in  other  cases 
their  farms  are  widely  scattered.  In  some  cases 
the  tenant  has  only  a part  of  the  farm,  as,  for  exam- 
ple, that  devoted  to  the  production  of  beets.  He 
then  ordinarily  occupies  a house  built  for  the  " hired 
help  ” or  a tenant.  This  is  frequently  if  not  usually  a 
fairly  substantial  cottage.  The  Chinese  were  never 
employed  in  this  part  of  Colorado  and  the  familiar 
California  bunk  house  is  entirely  unknown.  In 
numerous  cases,  however,  the  Japanese  tenant 
leases  an  entire  farm,  and,  if  so,  he  ordinarily 
occupies  the  regular  farmhouse.  In  these  cases  the 
farm  has  generally  come  into  the  possession  of  some 
one  already  living  elsewhere  or  the  owner  has  moved 
into  Denver.  There  are  some  instances,  however, 
where  the  farmer  has  rented  the  entire  farm  but  still 
continues  to  live  on  it.  The  Japanese  families  have 
replaced  white  families  to  a certain  extent. 

High  Rents  Paid.  — Little  of  the  farming  by 
Japanese,  except  in  the  growing  of  sugar  beets,  is  a 

85 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


matter  of  convenience  in  getting  the  handwork  done. 
The  chief  factor  explaining  the  extensive  leasing  is 
found  in  the  high  rents  the  Japanese  tenants  are 
willing  to  pay.  They  are  the  highest  bidders  for 
land.  Some  years  ago  the  competition  among 
would-be  tenants  was  so  keen  that  an  organization 
was  formed  at  Fort  Lupton  which  then  fixed  a 
maximum  rental  for  land  to  be  devoted  to  the  pro- 
duction of  sugar  beets.  Nor  is  this  control  entirely 
a matter  of  the  past.  The  eagerness  of  the  Japanese 
to  establish  themselves  as  farmers  still  results  in 
high  rents. 

Tenant  Farming  and  a Home.  House  and  Field 
Work.  — One  reason  why  the  Japanese  are  so 
anxious  to  gain  control  of  land  is  that  they  wish  to 
establish  a home  for  the  family.  Nearly  all  of 
these  tenant  farmers  are  married  and  have  their 
families  with  them.  The  wives  do  much  work  in 
the  fields.  In  some  cases  the  housework  is  sadly 
neglected  and  the  tenant  farmers  permit  the  houses 
to  deteriorate.  That  is  true  of  almost  any  com- 
munity, however,  and  one  finds  an  equal  number  of 
places  where  the  houses  are  neatly  furnished  and 
well  taken  care  of.  On  the  whole  the  Japanese  are 
as  well  if  not  better  housed  than  the  German 
Russians  who  have  made  great  headway  as  farmers 
in  Colorado,  their  wives  do  no  more  if  as  much  of  the 
work  in  the  fields,  and  the  Japanese  standard  of 
living,  which  is  not  a low  one,  appears  to  be  the 
higher  of  the  two. 

Toleration.  — Though  adverse  criticism  can  be 
found  — and  it  can  be  of  any  incoming  race  — 

86 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 

there  is  no  pronounced  opposition  to  the  Japanese 
as  farmers.  They  are  tolerated  just  as  they  are 
tolerated  as  laborers.  General  opposition  once 
prevailed  against  them  in  the  fruit-growing  section 
of  western  Colorado  ; in  Denver  it  was  strongly 
organized  and  carried  farther  than  in  any  large  city 
save  San  Francisco.  But  here,  with  comparatively 
few  Japanese  seeking  employment,  the  opposition 
even  in  union  labor  circles  seems  to  have  very 
largely  disappeared. 

In  the  agricultural  communities  of  Colorado  the 
Japanese  are  tolerated  and  with  no  general  com- 
plaint. They  are  welcomed  as  tenants.  But  they 
live  in  rather  than  as  a part  of  these  communities. 
Of  intercourse  between  the  races  there  is  little. 
Most  of  the  Japanese  women  cannot  yet  speak 
English,  and  most  of  their  children  are  too  young 
to  attend  school.  The  Japanese  deal  with  others 
freely,  but  their  social  life  is  their  own.  What 
further  will  result  from  toleration  and  business 
relations  remains  to  be  seen. 

Hired  Help.  — Before  turning  to  the  Northwest, 
a word  should  be  said  concerning  the  laborers 
employed  by  Japanese  farmers.  Much  hired  help 
is  needed  in  cultivation  and  harvesting,  and  natu- 
rally the  preference  of  the  farmers  is  for  men  of  their 
own  race.  But  such  labor  has  become  relatively 
scarce.  It  commands  from  $2  to  $2.50  per  day. 
More  and  more  laborers  of  other  races  are  being 
employed  by  Japanese  farmers,  and  especially  the 
lower-priced  Mexicans  who  are  found  in  increasing 
numbers  in  Northern  Colorado. 

87 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Japanese  in  Agriculture  in  Washington.  — Turn- 
ing to  the  Northwest,  Washington  presents  an 
experience  with  Japanese  agriculture  second  in 
interest  only  to  that  of  California.  Seattle  and 
Tacoma,  with  a large  urban  population  and  with  a 
big  advantage  over  other  ports  in  shipping  supplies 
to  Alaska,  afford  an  excellent  market  for  potatoes, 
berries,  and  garden  and  dairy  products.  This 
opportunity  has  been  embraced  by  an  increasing 
number  of  Japanese,  some  of  them  attracted  from 
the  city,  more  of  them  from  the  lumber  mill  and  the 
railroad  where  the  members  of  this  race  have  found 
employment  in  large  numbers  upon  their  arrival  in 
Seattle  or  their  advent  from  Canada.  With  a total 
Japanese  adult  male  population  of  perhaps  10,000 
in  1913,  about  one  fourth  of  them  were  engaged  in 
agricultural  pursuits,  at  least  a part  of  the  year.^ 

Have  Little  Influence  on  General  Market  for  Farm 
Labor.  — Though  the  Japanese  formerly  underbid 
white  laborers  for  farm  work  ^ and  though  some  have 
been  employed  in  the  fields  and  dairies  conducted  by 
other  races,  most  of  the  Japanese  working  as  farm 
laborers  have  always  been  employed  in  handwork  by 
farmers  of  their  own  race.  The  history  of  Japanese 
farm  labor  is  almost  an  incident  in  Japanese  farming. 
They  have  never  cut  a figure  in  the  agricultural 
labor  market.  Washington,  unlike  California,  had 
no  industries  built  upon  Chinese  labor  which  felt  a 
need  for  Japanese  as  the  Chinese  disappeared. 

1 The  number  of  farmers  is  estimated  in  1914  as  715,  of  regular 
farm  hands,  568. 

^ See  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  510-51 1. 

88 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 


Tenant  Farming.  — The  first  farm  in  Washington 
leased  by  a Japanese  was  in  1892,  but  it  was  not 
until  some  fifteen  years  ago,  when  many  began  to 
arrive  at  Seattle,  that  more  than  a few  farms  came 
under  their  control.  In  1910,  according  to  the 
Census,  there  were  316  farms  with  a total  acreage 
of  9,412,  leased  by  Japanese.^  In  1913  the  number 
of  farms  leased  was  about  560  ; the  acreage  had 
increased  to  16,000  or  17,000.^  All  of  the  land 
farmed  in  Washington  by  Japanese  is  leased. 
Dairy  land  is  ordinarily  leased  for  a period  of  five 
years,  other  land  for  shorter  periods,  the  length  of 
the  lease  depending  more  or  less  upon  the  crop  or 
crops  grown.  That  no  agricultural  land  is  owned 
by  the  members  of  this  race  is  explained  by  a 
clause  in  the  state  constitution,  which  prevents 
aliens  who  have  not  declared  their  intention  to  be- 
come citizens  of  the  United  States  from  owning  land 
to  be  devoted  to  agriculture  (or  almost  any  other 
purpose).  The  restrictive  clause,  it  should  be 
noted,  was  adopted  before  there  was  any  problem 
of  Asiatic  immigration  in  Washington. 

Character  of  Japanese  Farming.  — Nearly  all 
of  the  Japanese  farming  is  of  the  intensive  type, 
requiring  much  care  and  handwork.®  It  is  of  the 

^ Census  Bulletin  127,  p.  44. 

Since  the  above  was  written  the  Secretary  of  the  Japanese 
Association  reports  that  in  1914  there  are  586  farms  leased  for  cash, 
with  a total  acreage  of  16,123.  There  are  a very  few  share 
tenants. 

® Of  3,454  acres  of  improved  land  in  Kings  County  reported  by  the 
Census  (Bulletin  127),  983  were  devoted  to  the  production  of  straw- 
berries, bush  berries,  and  potatoes. 

89 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

kind  the  market  places  a premium  upon,  but  which 
the  ordinary  American  farmer  is  slow  to  engage  in. 
Most  of  it  is  carried  on  within  hauling  distance  of 
Seattle  and  Tacoma  or  the  small  shipping  stations 
located  between  those  cities.^  Here  and  there,  in 
different  parts  of  the  state,  however,  a few  farms 
are  to  be  found.  Small  numbers  of  farms  are  found 
along  the  Columbia  River  (across  from  Hood  River, 
Oregon),  for  example,  in  the  Wenatchee  Valley,  and 
about  Everett  and  Bellingham,  but  they  are  unim- 
portant from  every  point  of  view. 

Japanese  in  Public  Markets  of  Seattle.  — The 
public  markets  of  Seattle  are  in  some  if  not  in  all 
respects  the  most  interesting  of  any  in  the  West. 
The  one  on  Pike  Street  affords  the  widest  selection  of 
foodstuffs  vended  at  the  lowest  prices  found  in  any 
of  the  dozen  or  more  markets  visited  by  the  writer 
during  the  year.  Here  are  some  four  hundred 
stalls,  with  stores  in  the  background.  Some  three 
hundred  of  the  four  hundred  stalls  are  occupied  by 
Japanese  producers.  They  sell  nearly  all  the  berries 
and  the  larger  part  of  the  green  vegetables.  In  the 
vegetable  market,  however,  they  compete  with  a 
considerable  number  of  Italian  growers  who  for- 
merly predominated  in  this  kind  of  farming.  The 
other  white  growers  are  selling  fruit,  turnips,  and 
the  like.  The  low  prices  have  resulted  from  the 
great  abundance  of  produce  grown.  While  they 
are  a good  thing  from  the  point  of  view  of  the 
purchaser,  the  growers  cannot  do  otherwise  than 

1 Of  7,005  acres  of  improved  land  held  by  the  Japanese,  3,454 
acres  were  in  Kings  County.  Most  of  the  rest  was  in  Pierce  County. 

90 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 


complain,  as  they  complained  five  years  ago,  that 
the  increasing  number  of  Japanese  gardeners  has 
resulted  in  an  undue  expansion  of  vegetable  grow- 
ing. Many  purchasers,  it  is  said,  favor  the  Japanese 
growers  in  the  market,  not  that  there  is  any  under- 
selling, but  because  of  the  personal  interest  they 
appear  to  take  in  those  who  patronize  them. 

Predominate  in  Some  Branches  of  Production.  — 
The  Japanese  now  predominate  in  the  growing  of 
certain  kinds  of  vegetables  and  strawberries.  From 
this  it  is  not  to  be  concluded,  however,  that  the 
number  of  other  growers  has  actually  diminished. 
The  truth  is  that  the  Japanese  growers  have  in- 
creased in  number  and  acreage  most  rapidly  with 
the  expanding  market  at  hand.^ 

Industry  and  Efficiency  Shown.  — The  gardens 
of  the  Japanese  bear  witness  to  the  industry,  in- 
telligence, and  efficiency  of  the  race.  The  quality 
of  the  produce  is  good.  Much  of  the  land  has  been 
taken  as  left  by  the  timbermen,  the  stumps  removed, 
and  reduced  to  cultivation  by  the  Japanese  tenants. 
They  have  done  much  to  develop  the  agricultural 

^ The  Census  Bureau  (Bulletin  127)  publishes  the  following 
figures  for  1910  for  Kings  and  Pierce  counties.  Of  course  the  figures 
have  changed  considerably  during  the  last  four  years. 


Crop 


Japanese  Acreage 


Total  Acreage 


Strawberries 
Other  berries 
Potatoes  . . . 

Other  vegetables 


421 

77 

858 

717 


1,297 

1.043 

6,972 

3.467 


91 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

possibilities  of  these  communities  — more  un- 
doubtedly than  any  other  race  has  shown  an  inclina- 
tion to  do.  From  potatoes  as  the  first  crop,  this 
land  has  sooner  or  later  been  converted  into  vege- 
table gardens.  But  other  gardens  have  been  devel- 
oped from  land  which  had  been  devoted  to  general 
farming,  and  a few  have  been  taken  over  from  others 
who  had  been  growing  vegetables. 

Disinclination  of  Owners  to  Lease.  — The  prog- 
ress of  Japanese  as  tenants  has  been  made  in  spite 
of  the  disinclination  on  the  part  of  some  land- 
owners  to  lease  to  them.  The  disinclination  has 
gradually  given  way,  however,  because  of  the  ad- 
vantages owners  have  found  in  leasing  their  land.^ 
The  Japanese  have  proved  to  be  good  farmers,  many 
of  them  have  been  willing  to  clear  land  and  reduce  it 
to  cultivation  at  great  expense,  and  they  have  been 
willing  to  pay  relatively  high  rents.  Rents  have 
risen  greatly  within  the  last  ten  years  or  so  and  the 
competition  of  Japanese  for  land  has  not  been  the 
least  important  factor  in  it.  But  to  this  we  shall 
recur  later. 

Japanese  Dairy  Farming.  — Dairy  farming  in  the 
White  River  Valley  has  recently  proved  to  be  very 
attractive  to  the  Japanese.  In  1909  they  operated 
some  fifteen  dairies.  The  number  at  present  is  85, 
but  this  is  still  only  a small  percentage  of  the  entire 
number  contributing  to  the  market  in  Seattle  and 
Tacoma  and  to  the  condensing  plants.  These  farms 

1 See  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  508-509. 
Recently  this  same  disinclination  has  been  evidenced,  I am  reliably 
informed,  farther  north  along  Puget  Sound. 

92 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 


are,  as  a rule,  rented  for  five-year  periods,  stocked 
with  from  twenty-five  to  two  hundred  cows,  and 
operated  by  Japanese  labor.  Most  of  these  farmers 
have  served  their  apprenticeship  as  milkers.  With 
their  savings  put  by  they  pay  a part  of  the  pur- 
chase price  ; the  remainder  is  met  by  loans  obtained 
from  the  banks  of  the  White  River  Valley  upon 
chattel  mortgages  given.  Most  of  the  equipment 
is,  of  course,  provided  by  the  landowner.  About 
two  acres  of  land  is  rented  for  each  cow  in  the  herd. 
Much  of  the  feed  required  is  grown  upon^the  farms, 
and  frequently  a part  of  the  land  is  sublet  for  the 
growing  of  vegetables  for  the  market. 

While  investigating  the  farms  about  Seattle  in 
August,  I visited  several  of  these  dairy  farms. 
The  equipment  varied  greatly  in  quality  so  far  as  it 
was  provided  by  the  landowner.  The  herds  were 
excellent  and  the  dairies  were  in  sanitary  condition. 
Most  of  the  farmers  showed  much  pride  in  their 
stock. 

Rents  Paid.  — The  rent  paid  for  dairy  lands 
varies  from  $io  to  $30,  but  is  most  frequently 
about  $25  per  acre.  Where  the  lower  figure  ob- 
tains, some  parts  of  the  land  are  usually  to  be  cleared 
and  reduced  to  cultivation  as  a part  of  the  considera- 
tion. A few  years  ago  this  land  rented  for  $6  to 
$8  per  acre,  so  the  Japanese  say.  The  competi- 
tion among  them  for  leases  has  been  the  greatest 
factor  in  causing  the  increase  indicated.  Some  of 
the  tenants  complain  that  the  landowners  take 
advantage  of  them  and  demand  a higher  rent  when 
their  leases  are  about  to  expire  and  they  have  their 

93 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


herds  to  provide  for  or  to  dispose  of.  Be  this  as  it 
may,  the  Japanese  Association  is  trying  to  control 
the  competition  for  land  and  to  prevent  unduly 
high  rentals.  It  is  trying  to  eliminate  competition 
among  tenants  by  preventing  others  from  bidding 
for  land  on  which  the  lease  is  about  to  expire  until 
the  lessee  decides  that  he  does  not  want  it  longer. 
But  the  rent  remains  high  nevertheless,  and  the 
Japanese  farmers  are  seeking  land  near  Everett  and 
in  other  localities  where  the  price  per  acre  is  much 
lower.  In  the  opinion  of  the  writer,  the  relation 
between  Japanese  tenancy  and  relatively  high 
rents  is  the  most  significant  thing  connected  with 
the  situation  in  the  Northwest.  It  is  all  the  more 
significant  for  it  is  one  of  the  well-nigh  universal 
facts.  The  Japanese  have  been  the  highest  bidders 
for  land. 

The  living  conditions  of  the  Japanese  vary  from 
the  relatively  good  to  bad.  Of  course  taken  as  a 
whole,  they  do  not  compare  favorably  with  those 
of  the  well-established  native,  German,  and  Scan- 
dinavian farmers.  They  are  perhaps  somewhat 
inferior  to  those  of  the  Italians,  most  of  whom  have 
been  living  in  the  communities  for  a longer  time. 
In  some  cases  the  landowner  has  for  years  lived 
elsewhere  than  on  the  farm.  Others  have  rather 
recently  pocketed  the  high  rent  paid  and  moved 
to  Seattle,  Bellingham  or  elsewhere.  In  either  case 
the  Japanese  occupy  the  “ white  house,”  and  this 
has  been  followed  by  neglect  in  painting  and  making 
needed  repairs.  In  the  majority  of  cases,  however, 
the  Japanese  tenant  does  not  occupy  a house 

94 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 

vacated  by  a white  family,  but  lives  in  the  unpre- 
tentious cottage  built  for  the  " hired  help  ” or  for 
him,  or  in  a “ shack  ” built  by  the  tenant  himself  of 
lumber  furnished  by  the  landlord.  Hence  most 
of  the  living  quarters  are  poor. 

Much  the  same  may  be  said  of  the  housekeeping 
and  the  care  of  the  premises.  Some  of  the  houses 
are  comfortably  furnished  and  well-kept ; a major- 
ity are  not.  Most  of  the  tenant  farmers  are 
married,  but  their  wives  usually  do  much  work  in 
the  gardens  and  fields.  Outdoor  labor  is  frequently 
engaged  in  at  the  expense  of  the  housework,  for  the 
Japanese  farmer  is  almost  always  overwhelmed 
with  work. 

Hired  Help  and  Wages.  — Most  of  the  laborers 
hired  by  the  Japanese  farmers  are  of  their  own  race, 
and  most  of  the  Japanese  agricultural  laborers  are 
working  for  their  fellow  countrymen.  Laborers 
have  become  scarce,  and  wages  have  risen  from 
$1.35  per  day  without  board  for  regular  work  and 
$1.50  for  seasonal  work,  in  1909,  to  $1.75  and  $2 
per  day.  Milkers  in  1909  were  most  frequently 
paid  $40  or  $45  per  month.  Their  wages  now 
range  from  $55  to  $75,  but  the  most  usual  figure  is 
$60  per  month. 

The  Situation  in  Oregon.  - — The  situation  in 
Oregon  is  very  similar  to  that  in  Washington.  For 
ten  years  there  has  been  a movement  away  from 
railway  labor  to  employment  on  the  farms.  Yet 
the  Japanese  have  never  been  an  important  element 
in  the  agricultural  labor  supply,  and  the  relatively 
low  wages  which  formerly  prevailed  did  not  notice- 

95 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

ably  alter  the  opportunities  of  others  to  secure 
employment  at  the  wages  they  were  able  to  earn.^ 
Though  at  present  some  Japanese  are  employed  in 
the  hop  fields  and  a considerable  number  as  pickers 
and  packers  of  apples  in  the  Hood  River  orchards, 
most  of  them  are  employed  on  farms  operated 
by  their  countrymen.  Altogether  the  number  em- 
ployed as  wage  earners  on  farms  is  not  large  enough 
to  be  of  any  importance. 

Farm  Statistics.  — According  to  data  supplied 
by  the  consul  stationed  at  Portland,  the  Japanese 
in  1913  operated  in  Oregon  172  farms  with  a total 
acreage  of  6,477,  of  which  they  owned  2,793.  The 
acreage  farmed  in  1910,  according  to  the  Census, 
was  4,608.^  The  difference  in  acreage  thus  shown 
is  believed  to  indicate  fairly  accurately  the  progress 
made  during  the  three  years. 

Character  of  Farming.  — Most  of  the  Japanese 
farms  are  within  twenty  miles  or  so  of  Portland, 
where  they  number  some  100,  about  Hood  River, 
where  there  are  56  or  57,  and  at  The  Dalles. 
In  the  several  localities  about  Portland  they  engage 
chiefly  in  the  growing  of  berries,  potatoes,  cabbage, 
melons,  and  vegetables,  and  in  the  raising  of 
hogs,  but  some  general  farming  is  carried  on  also. 
Relatively  they  are  not  less  important  as  growers 
of  vegetables  than  they  are  about  Seattle ; the  one 
model  dairy  formerly  conducted  has  been  discon- 
tinued. About  Hood  River  most  of  the  Japanese 

1 See  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  521-532, 
with  reference  to  the  history  of  Japanese  in  agriculture  in  Oregon 
to  1909.  ^ Bulletin  127  (1914). 

96 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 


are  developing  apple  orchards  and  while  doing  so 
are  engaged  in  growing  strawberries.  About  The 
Dalles,  the  land  purchased  by  a large  corporation 
is  chiefly  devoted  to  extensive  agriculture,  wheat 
being  the  most  important  crop.  Taking  the  state 
as  a whole,  the  nature  of  the  farming  carried  on  is 
shown  by  the  following  figures  obtained  from  the 
Japanese  Consul.  They  relate  to  the  year  1913. 


Kind  or  Crop 

Acreage 

Hay 

867 

Wheat 

707 

Potatoes 

853 

Berries 

957 

Vegetables 

858 

Fruits,  onions,  beans,  etc 

536 

Hops 

140 

Pasture 

201 

Unimproved 

1,358 

Scientific  Knowledge  as  well  as  Industry  Ap- 
plied. — Except  for  the  overproduction  of  straw- 
berries, Japanese  farming  has  had  no  adverse 
effect  upon  the  market.  Their  farming  is  of  a good 
type.  As  tenants,  it  is  said,  they  generally  improve 
the  land,  while  white  tenants,  now  few  in  these 
communities  — as  a rule  permit  the  land  to  deteri- 
orate. A rather  large  percentage  of  them  apply 
scientific  knowledge  as  well  as  industry  to  the  work 
in  hand.  One  of  the  most  interesting  instances  is 
found  in  the  raising  of  pigs,  garbage  being  hauled 
from  Portland  and  prepared  as  an  important 

97 


H 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM ' IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

element  in  the  feed  used.  One  of  the  five  engaged 
in  this  business  was  visited.  A graduate  of  one 
of  the  foremost  universities  of  his  native  land,  he 
was  found  breeding  and  feeding  swine  in  the  light 
of  the  best  scientific  knowledge  and  to  be  making 
a success  of  the  venture.  His  herd  numbered 
between  500  and  600  head. 

Reduction  of  Wild  Land  to  Cultivation.  — While 
fully  developed  lands  have  been  leased  in  some 
cases,  no  small  part  of  the  acreage  now  controlled 
by  the  Japanese  in  Oregon  has  been  “ taken  wild  ” 
and  reduced  to  cultivation.  This  is  especially 
true  in  the  vicinity  of  Hood  River,  where  they  now 
own  some  1,100  acres  and  lease  about  500  more. 
Here  nearly  all  of  the  land  has  been  taken  as  left 
by  the  loggers,  and  with  much  hard  work  and  at 
great  expense  (it  costs  $100  to  $150  per  acre  to 
clear  it)  has  been  or  is  being  transformed  into  apple 
orchards.  Their  contribution  to  the  community 
— with  its  13,000  acres  of  orchard  — is  no  small 
one.  While  the  orchards  are  being  developed, 
strawberries  are  usually  grown  between  the  rows 
of  young  trees.  From  the  berries  placed  upon  the 
market  and  their  earnings  as  pickers  and  packers 
in  the  neighboring  orchards,  these  farmers  have 
been  tiding  themselves  over  the  long  years  until 
their  orchards  begin  to  bear. 

High  Rents  and  High  Prices.  — In  Oregon,  as 
elsewhere,  the  Japanese,  eager  to  establish  them- 
selves, have  paid  high  prices  for  land  purchased  and 
high  rentals  for  that  leased.  As  in  Washington 
and  elsewhere  in  the  West,  land  values  are  really 

98 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 

too  high  for  those  who  would  buy  for  the  purpose 
of  farming.  Of  course  the  Japanese  have  had  little 
to  do  with  this  situation,  for  their  numbers  have 
been  too  small.  In  some  localities,  however,  the 
level  of  rents  has  been  affected  by  their  competi- 
tion for  land.  As  the  Immigration  Commission  re- 
ported : 

“The  effect  of  the  competition  of  the  Japanese 
has  been  to  cause  rents  to  rise  in  several  of  the 
localities  near  Portland.  Where  cash  rents  now 
paid  by  the  Japanese  are  from  $6  to  $40,  they  were 
from  $4  to  $15  before  the  members  of  that  race 
began  to  lease.  When  many  prospective  tenants 
appeared  in  a locality,  the  landowners  raised  the 
rents  because  the  credit  of  the  Japanese  was 
limited,  and,  it  is  said,  because  as  tenants  they 
would  pay  whatever  sum  was  asked.  Conse- 
quently some  of  the  farmers  have  found  it  more 
profitable  to  rent  their  land  than  to  farm  it  on  their 
own  account.”  ^ 

Housing.  — In  the  localities  about  Portland  some 
Japanese  holdings  have  been  made  by  subdivision 
of  the  land,  and  the  houses  occupied  are  small 
cottages  built  by  or  for  them.  In  other  cases  the 
entire  farm  has  been  leased,  the  [premises  along 
with  the  land.  There  seems  to  be  no  Tendency  on 
the  part  of  white  families  to  move  away  from  the 
community  because  of  the  mere  presence  of  the 
Japanese,  but  there  are  instances  where  the  white 
families  who  own  the  land  live  in  Portland  or  else- 
where because  of  the  availability  of  the  Japanese 

* Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  p.  539. 

99 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


as  tenants.  About  Hood  River  some  of  the  Japa- 
nese occupy  the  rather  rude  “ box  houses  ” or  log 
houses  of  a couple  of  rooms  built  for  them  or  by 
themselves  as  more  or  less  temporary  quarters. 
These  shelters  are  not  particularly  different  from 
the  houses  occupied  by  others  who  make  a rude 
start  on  land  to  be  cleared.  The  only  important 
difference  is  that  many  of  the  Japanese,  but  few 
white  families,  are  willing  to  begin  their  farming 
in  this  way.  How  long  before  these  shelters  give 
way  to  others  more  in  keeping  with  the  standard 
set  in  a normal  community  remains  to  be  seen. 

Housekeeping  and  Field  Work.  — Nothing  in 
the  living  arrangements  of  the  Japanese  farmers  of 
Oregon  differs  from  that  found  elsewhere.  The 
furnishings  are  nearly  all  American,  and  some  of 
the  houses  are  very  well  furnished.  The  Japanese 
agent  of  the  Immigration  Commission  reported 
that  in  most  instances  the  housekeeping  was  bad. 
At  that  time,  however,  most  of  the  farmers  were 
single  men  or  did  not  have  their  families  with  them. 
Now  in  almost  four  fifths  of  the  cases  there  is  a 
wife  and  the  housework  is  more  carefully  done. 
In  some  cases  it  must  be  said,  however,  that  it  is 
still  neglected  for  work  in  the  fields  — for  farming 
among  the  Japanese  is  a workaday  life,  and  the 
wives  are  generally  expected  to  take  a more  or  less 
regular  part  in  it. 

Wages  have  become  High.  — Japanese  farm  labor 
has  become  high-priced.  In  the  early  days  it  was 
very  low ; then  for  several  years  the  wages  were 
about  the  same  as  paid  section  hands,  advancing 

100 


THE  JAPANESE  IN  AGRICULTURE 

from  $1.10  to  $1.50  per  day.  About  Hood  River  $2 
per  day  is  now  paid  for  ordinary  work  ; fruit  packers 
receive  25  or  50  cents  more.  To  earn  these  wages 
some  250  Japanese  immigrate  to  Hood  River  for 
the  harvest.  Wages  elsewhere  are  at  other  seasons 
proportionately  high.  According  to  data  supplied 
by  the  Japanese  Consul,  the  average  income  per 
month  of  agricultural  laborers,  taking  the  entire 
state,  was  $52  per  month  in  1913. 

No  Strong  Opposition  to  Japanese  in  Oregon.  — 
In  Oregon  there  has  never  been  any  strong  opposi- 
tion to  the  Japanese.  Perhaps  this  is  closely  con- 
nected with  the  fact  that  they  have  never  num- 
bered as  many  as  4,000  all  told.  The  estimated 
number,  December,  1913,  was  3,672.  Be  the  cause 
of  the  comparative  absence  of  opposition  what  it 
may,  the  labor  unions  in  Portland  have  made  little 
effort  to  arouse  opposition  to  them  and  the  little 
effort  made  has  had  little  effect.  In  the  country 
the  farmers  have  occasionally  grumbled  somewhat, 
but  there  has  not  been  any  organized  or  general 
opposition.  Recently,  however,  the  State  Grange 
adopted  a hostile  resolution,  but  this  was  the 
result  of  the  suggestion  of  a visiting  delegate  from 
the  Labor  Council  of  Portland.  In  general  there  is 
a spirit  of  toleration  and  in  some  instances  there 
is  visiting  back  and  forth  between  Japanese  and 
Americans.  At  Hood  River  was  found  as  favorable 
an  opinion  as  was  met  with  anywhere.  Occasion- 
ally, it  is  said,  some  one  complains  somewhat  of 
Japanese  land  purchases  but  it  is  not  taken  seriously. 
The  Secretary  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce, 

lOI 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

coming  from  California  five  years  ago,  commended 
them  highly  and  ranked  them  above  the  Greeks 
and  Italians  in  point  of  desirability.  Hood  River 
is  one  of  the  few  places  found  where  the  Japanese 
were  not  discriminated  against  in  the  barber 
shops,  restaurants,  and  the  like.  There  the  Japa- 
nese patronize  the  “ white  ” barber  shops  and  lodg- 
ing houses  ; they  have  none  of  their  own.  ^'  Absence 
of  opposition  is  appreciated  by  the  Japanese. 
More  than  one  farmer  stated  that  he  had  come 
there  from  Seattle  or  California  because  there  was 
no  friction. 


102 


CHAPTER  V 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS  IN 
CALIFORNIA 

“ Japanese  Problem  ” centers  in  California  and 
in  Agriculture.  — The  “ Japanese  problem  ” centers 
in  California,  and  presumably  in  the  agricultural 
communities,  for  that  state  has  always  had  con- 
siderably more  than  one  half  of  the  Japanese  popu- 
lation of  the  United  States,  and  more  than  one  half 
of  the  number  residing  there,  have  been  engaged 
in  agricultural  pursuits.  In  December,  1913,  the 
Japanese- American  Yearbook  stated  that  of  42,089 
men  gainfully  occupied,  23,607  were  agricultural 
laborers  or  farmers.  The  true  proportion  was  no 
doubt  much  larger  than  that  indicated,  for  during 
the  summer  months  many  leave  their  work  else- 
where to  take  employment  on  the  farms.  As  a 
result  of  his  investigations  four  years  ago,  the  Cali- 
fornia Commissioner  of  Labor  reported  that  sixty- 
five  per  cent  of  those  gainfully  occupied  were  en- 
gaged in  agriculture  as  laborers  or  farmers.  Fifteen 
per  cent  were  engaged  in  domestic  service  and 
related  activities,  an  equal  percentage  were  engaged 
in  business  or  were  employed  by  their  country- 
men who  were  thus  engaged,  and  the  remaining  live 
per  cent  were  employed  in  miscellaneous  occupations. 
The  acreage  of  land  owned,  leased,  or  worked  on 

103 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

contract  — a form  of  tenancy  — by  Japanese  in 
California  in  1913  was  281,687.^ 

California  Labor  Commissioner’s  Investigation.  — 
The  exact  position  now  occupied  by  the  Japanese 
agricultural  laborers  cannot  be  set  forth  with  statis- 
tical accuracy.  The  decreasing  number  of  adult 
Japanese  in  the  state  and  the  advance  of  a consider- 
able number  to  the  ranks  of  farmers  on  their  own 
account  have  made  some  readjustments  and  sub- 
stitutions necessary  since  1909-10,  when  the  Cali- 
fornia Labor  Commissioner  made  an  extended 
investigation  of  farm  labor.  Nevertheless  in  most 
respects  the  situation  has  not  changed  greatly, 
and  some  of  the  data  presented  by  that  official  in 
his  Fourteenth  Biennial  Report  give  a good  point 
of  departure  in  discussing  the  Japanese  problem 
in  so  far  as  it  is  connected  with  agricultural  labor. 

Japanese  Labor,  by  Crops  Grown.  — The  investi- 
gations made  by  the  Commissioner  embraced 
2,369  farms  operated  by  white  farmers  (these 
being  taken  in  largest  numbers  from  those  parts  of 
the  state  where  intensive  agriculture  was  most 
extensively  practiced)  and  1,733  operated  by  Japa- 
nese farmers,  as  owners  or  tenants.  On  the  2,369 
farms  operated  by  white  farmers,  the  percentage 
of  labor  furnished  by  the  Japanese,  according  to 
the  principal  crops  grown,  was  as  follows:^ 


* According  to  the  Japanese- American  Yearbook  for  1913. 

^ These  percentages  were  presented  in  the  Commissioner’s  sum- 
mary report  supplied  to  the  press.  The  statistical  tables  and  a 
graphic  presentation  may  be  found  (p.  270)  in  his  Fourteenth 
Biennial  Report. 


104 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 


Berries,  87.2  per  cent 

Sugar  beets,  66.3  per  cent 

Nursery  products,  57.3  per  cent 

Grapes,  51.7  per  cent 

Vegetables,  45.7  per  cent 


Citrus  fruits,  38.1  per  cent 

Hops,  8.7  per  cent 

Deciduous  fruits,  36.5  per  cent 

Hay  and  grain,  6.6  per  cent 

Miscellaneous,  19.6  per  cent 


Employed  in  Intensive  Farming.  — It  is  evident 
from  these  percentages  that  the  Japanese  were 
employed  chiefly  in  the  growing  and  harvesting  of 
crops  finding  a place  in  intensive  agriculture. 
Their  importance  in  these  was  even  greater  than 
the  percentages  indicate,  for  the  table  does  not 
include  Japanese  farms,  practically  all  of  which 
were  devoted  to  this  type  of  farming.  Of  the 
17,784  persons  employed  on  the  1,733  Japanese 
farms  included  in  the  investigation,  96  per  cent 
were  Japanese.  Thus  the  true  percentage  of  the 
Japanese  laborers  on  farms  devoted  to  vegetables, 
berries,  and  deciduous  fruits  — the  important  crops 
grown  on  the  farms  operated  by  that  race  of  farmers 
— were  somewhat  larger  than  those  given  above. 
As  the  Immigration  Commission,  investigating  farm 
labor  at  the  same  time,  summarized  the  situation : 

“ The  Japanese  have  been  employed  in  prac- 
tically all  of  the  intensive  branches  of  agriculture 
in  California.  In  the  beet  industry  they  number 
4,500  of  between  6,000  and  7,000  hand  workers  em- 
ployed during  the  thinning  season.  They  pre- 
dominate and  control  the  handwork  in  the  beet 
fields  of  all  except  three  districts  in  the  state  — 
two  in  southern  California,  where  they  are  out- 
numbered by  the  Mexicans,  and  one  northern 
district,  where  they  do  not  care  to  work  and  Hindus 
were  the  most  numerous  race  employed  in  1909. 

105 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

In  the  grape  picking  of  the  various  parts  of  Cali- 
fornia, they  are  also  the  most  numerous  race, 
some  7,000  or  8,000  being  employed  during  the 
busiest  season  of  a few  weeks  in  the  fall.  They 
do  practically  all  of  the  work  in  the  berry  patches 
of  the  state.  In  the  various  districts  specializing 
in  certain  vegetables  and  on  truck  farms  near  the 
cities  they  do  much  of  the  work.  Much  of  the 
seasonal  work  in  most  of  the  deciduous  fruit  dis- 
tricts is  also  controlled  by  Japanese  laborers.”  ^ 

The  United  States  Census  shows  that  it  is  just 
these  crops  in  which  the  Japanese  were  chiefly  em- 
ployed in  which  California,  circumstanced  as  she 
has  been  by  soil,  climate,  labor  supply,  and  market 
facilities,  has  specialized  more  and  more  extensively. 
The  following  table  shows  the  value  of  these  crops, 
and  of  all  others  combined,  for  1899  and  1909.^ 


Crop 

Value,  1899 

Value,  1909 

Per  cent  of 
Increase 

Sugar  beets 

$1,554-134 

$4,335,358 

179.0 

Potatoes,  etc 

2,773,140 

5,235,073 

88.8 

Vegetables  

2,858,832 

6,886,885 

140.9 

Flowers  and  nursery  prod- 

ucts 

1,138,975 

3,601,301 

216.2 

Small  fruits 

911,411 

1,789,214 

96-3 

Seeds  

191,293 

800,758 

318.6 

Fruits  and  nuts  .... 

28,809,830 

48,917,655 

69.8 

Totals  of  above  .... 

$38,237,615 

$71,666,244 

87.4 

Totals  of  all  others  . . 

57,128,097 

81,444,769 

42.6 

Grand  totals 

$95,365,712 

$153,111,013 

61.6 

^ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  64. 

2 Compiled  from  Census,  Abstract  with  Supplement  for  Cali- 
fornia, p.  631. 


106 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 

Occupations.  — One  more  bit  of  statistical  evi- 
dence may  be  introduced  from  the  report  of  the 
Commissioner  of  Labor.’^  In  so  far  as  the  Japanese 
were  employed  by  white  farmers,  they  were  en- 
gaged for  the  most  part  in  the  least  desirable  occupa- 
tions — as  is  evidenced  by  the  following  statistics : 


Occupation 

White  Persons 
Employed  by 
White  Farmers 
Employing 
Whites  Only 

White  Persons 
Employed  by 
White  Farmers 
Employing 
Whites  and 
Japanese 

Japanese  Em- 
ployed by 
White  Employ- 
ers Employing 
Whites  and 
Japanese 

Percentage  of 
Japanese  Em- 
ployed by 
Farmers  Em- 
ploying both 
Classes 

Berry  pickers . . . 

— 

99 

344 

77-6 

Vegetable  pickers  . 

34 

77  ■ 

150 

66.1 

Celery  cutters  . . 

— 

20 

III 

84.7 

Fruit  pickers  . . . 

3.044 

2,280 

4,814 

67.9 

Fruit  cutters  . . . 

780 

1,934 

33 

1-7 

Fitters  .... 

606 

559 

.0 

Dryers  .... 

181 

218 

15 

6.5 

Kilnmen  .... 

41 

lOI 

.0 

Packers  .... 

109 

797 

449 

36.0 

Grape  pickers  . . 

1,660 

669 

4,722 

87.6 

Pruners  .... 

214 

506 

1,889 

78.9 

Hop  pickers  . . . 

2,646 

3,831 

741 

16.2 

Hoers  and  thinners 

12 

— 

1,054 

100.0 

Hoers 

409 

280 

729 

72.2 

Toppers  and  loaders 

16 

16 

1,229 

98.7 

Irrigators  . . 

10 

5 

48 

90.6 

Weeders  .... 

— 

4 

94 

95-9 

Cultivators  . . . 

81 

536 

137 

20.4 

Farm  hands  . . . 

2,131 

2,703 

2,176 

44.6 

Harvest  hands  . . 

365 

65 

150 

69.8 

Laborers  .... 

116 

300 

1,343 

81.7 

Teamsters  . . . 

340 

1,749 

10 

.6 

Firemen  .... 

22 

32 

— 

.0. 

Foremen  .... 

48 

144 

22 

13-3 

Total  males  . . . 

10,703 

12,680 

21,558 

63.0 

Total  females 

2,458 

3,784 

144 

3-7 

Grand  totals  . . 

13,161 

16,464 

21,702 

56.9 

‘ California  Commissioner  of  Labor,  Fourteenth  Biennial  Re- 
port, p.  270  (inserted  folder). 


107 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Thus  the  Japanese  were  engaged  chiefly  in  pick- 
ing berries  and  grapes,  pruning  trees  and  vines, 
thinning  and  hoeing,  topping  and  loading  sugar 
beets,  weeding  and  doing  harvest  work  — all  of  it 
handwork,  much  of  it  of  the  “ stoop  over  ” or 
“ squat  ” variety,  all  of  it  seasonal  in  character 
and  giving  but  brief  employment  on  a given  farm 
and  in  a given  community,  and  much  of  it  dirty 
and  arduous.  As  “ cultivators  ” and  “ farm  hands  ” 
they  occupied  a subordinate  position  ; as  teamsters 
they  were  negligible.  On  the  farms  operated  by 
Japanese,  of  course,  more  of  the  desirable  tasks 
fell  to  their  lot,  but  even  there  much  of  the 
work  with  teams  was  done  by  the  white  land- 
owner  or  by  his  regular  hands,  most  of  them  white 
men. 

Questions.  — With  this  general  background, 
an  explanation  of  the  development  of  this  situation 
may  be  undertaken.  To  what  extent  had  laborers 
of  other  races  been  displaced  ? On  what  terms  had 
the  J apanese  and  other  races  competed  for  employ- 
ment? To  what  extent  was  Japanese  labor  supple- 
mentary to  that  of  other  races?  To  what  extent 
had  it  created  the  opportunities  which  it  embraced  ? 
These  questions  can  be  answered  with  some  degree 
of  satisfaction  as  a result  of  the  extensive  investiga- 
tion made  by  the  Immigration  Commission  in 
1909.  Its  summary  reports  will  be  freely  quoted 
in  this  connection.  Here  and  there  its  summary 
statements  will  be  expanded.^ 

1 The  quotations  which  follow  are  from  the  summary  report  of 
the  Immigration  Commission,  Vol.  23,  pp.  62  et  seq. 

108 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 

Entry  of  Japanese  made  Easy  by  Former  Em- 
ployment of  Chinese.  — “ The  Japanese  were  first 
employed  in  agricultural  work  in  California  about 
1887.  The  entry  and  subsequent  extensive  em- 
ployment of  Japanese  in  the  farming  districts  of 
this  state  was  made  easy,  because  of  the  previous 
employment  of  Chinese.  In  many  parts  of  the 
state  the  Chinese  had  predominated  for  years, 
so  that  the  restrictions  on  their  immigration  paved 
the  way  to  the  extensive  employment  of  Japanese, 
who  soon  adapted  themselves  so  as  to  fit  into  the 
Chinese  system  of  labor  and  living  conditions. 
Among  other  things  they  adopted  the  Chinese 
‘ boss  ’ system.  At  first  the  Japanese  worked  in 
small  unorganized  groups,  but  as  their  numbers 
increased  and  they  were  more  extensively  em- 
ployed, they  soon  became  organized  into  ‘ gangs  ’ 
under  leaders  or  bosses.  Though  individuals  move 
rather  freely  from  one  group  to  another,  this  form 
of  organization  has  been  important  in  explaining 
the  advance  made  by  the  Japanese  in  agriculture 
as  in  other  industries.” 

In  short,  they  were  conveniently  secured.  Many 
farmers  faced  the  practical  problem  of  finding 
substitutes  for  the  disappearing  Chinese,  who  had 
shaped  their  investments  and  methods. 

Beginnings  and  Progress.  — ” One  of  the  first 
of  the  agricultural  districts  in  which  the  Japanese 
found  employment  was  the  Vaca  Valley,  where 
four  came  in  the  winter  of  1887-8.  In  1890  four 
Japanese  went  to  Fresno,  and  the  following  year 
30  found  work  there  in  the  vineyards.  In  1891 
they  first  sought  employment  in  the  Newcastle 

109 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

fruit  district.  In  1892,  13  Japanese  were  employed 
as  hop  pickers  in  the  Pajaro  Valley.  They  ap- 
peared also  in  the  Lower  Sacramento  and  San 
Joaquin  River  country,  and  in  the  Marysville  and 
Suisun  districts  in  the  early  nineties.  In  the  early 
nineties  the  members  of  this  race  gained  a foothold 
in  the  beet  fields  of  the  state.  After  once  securing 
work,  the  number  of  Japanese  in  a district  increased 
rapidly,  and  they  found  employment  on  more  and 
more  ranches,  especially  while  the  immigration  was 
at  its  height  — from  1899  to  1906.  They  were 
later  in  entering  agricultural  work  in  southern 
California  than  in  the  northern  part  of  the  state. 
This  was  due  largely  to  the  fact  that  the  districts 
of  the  south  had  been  more  recently  developed, 
and  that  few  Chinese,  whom  the  Japanese  followed 
in  agricultural  work  in  the  north,  had  been  em- 
ployed there.  Japanese  were  just  beginning  to 
find  employment  in  the  citrus  fruit  industry  in 
1900,  and  their  employment  in  most  localities  of 
importance  in  citrus  fruit  growing  dates  from  1903 
or  1904.  Large  numbers  of  the  first  Japanese 
brought  to  the  southern  part  of  the  state  were 
employed  on  the  railroads,  from  which  most  of 
them  were  discharged  in  favor  of  Mexicans  about 
1902.  The  discharged  men  drifted  into  farm 
work,  in  certain  parts  of  which  they  predominated 
or  constituted  a large  percentage  in  most  districts 
in  1909. 

Competitors  of  the  Japanese.  — “ In  some  lo- 
calities the  Japanese  laborers  have  merely  made 
good  the  decrease  in  the  number  of  Chinese  due 
to  natural  causes,  and  supplied  a part  or  all  of  the 
laborers  needed  for  the  expanding  industries.  In 
other  localities  there  has  been  a net  displacement 

no 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 

of  Chinese  and  white  men  engaged  in  certain 
agricultural  occupations.  The  chief  competitors 
with  the  Japanese  in  the  handwork  involved  in 
sugar-beet  growing  are  Mexicans,  Chinese,  Koreans, 
and  Hindus.  In  fact,  white  men  have  never  been 
employed  to  any  great  extent  in  this  work.  In 
other  cases,  as  in  the  citrus  and  deciduous  fruit 
industries  in  most  of  the  localities  in  which  these 
center,  the  competition  is  principally  between  white 
persons  and  Japanese. 

Underbidding.  — “In  most  localities  the  Jap- 
anese at  first  offered  to  work  for  less  pay  than  any 
other  race.  Underbidding  of  white  men  was  all 
but,  if  not  quite  universal,  and  of  Chinese,  previous  to 
1900,  very  general.  Underbidding  of  the  Chinese 
and  white  men  was  the  method  commonly  used 
by  Japanese  for  some  years  to  gain  a foothold  in 
the  various  districts.  In  one  community  where 
the  Chinese  were  paid  $5  per  week,  the  Japanese 
first  worked  for  35  or  40  cents  per  day  in  the  early 
nineties.  In  another  locality  the  price  for  work 
done  by  Japanese  by  contract  was  first  estimated 
on  a basis  of  45  cents  per  day  as  against  $i  for 
Chinese,  and  in  the  later  nineties  at  day  work 
Japanese  were  paid  75  to  90  cents  per  day  where 
Chinese  were  paid  $1.  In  a third  district  they 
were  paid  70  cents  per  day,  and  for  two  or  three 
years  their  wages  varied  from  60  to  90  cents  as 
against  $1.25  per  day  for  Chinese  and  $i  per  day, 
including  board,  for  white  men.  Before  the  close 
of  the  nineties,  however,  the  wages  paid  Japanese 
had  begun  to  rise  and  the  increase  in  their  wages 
continued  even  when  the  influx  of  the  members 
of  this  race  was  greatest.  The  continued  rise  in 
the  wages  of  Japanese  farm  laborers  during  the 

III 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

years  since  1900,  when  the  number  of  immigrants 
of  this  race  was  largest,  is  explained  by  the  em- 
ployment of  these  laborers  in  more  and  more  of 
the  rapidly  expanding  agricultural  districts  and 
also  the  greater  opportunity  and  employment 
offered  them  at  better  wages  in  other  industries 
and  in  the  Pacific  Coast  cities.  They  were  also 
well  organized  under  ‘ bosses,’  which  greatly  aided 
them  in  securing  work  at  the  higher  wages.  The 
Chinese  were  decreasing  in  number  and  the  better 
class  of  white  men  did  not  care  to  engage  in  the 
seasonal  farm  work  when  regular  work  could  be 
found  at  good  wages  elsewhere.  With  prosperous 
times  and  an  inadequate  labor  supply  under  pre- 
vailing conditions,  with  new  opportunities  opened 
for  them,  and  especially  with  restrictions  upon 
their  further  immigration,  the  wages  of  Japanese 
have  increased  more  than  50  per  cent  within  fifteen 
years  and,  especially  since  great  restrictions  were 
placed  upon  the  further  increase  of  their  numbers, 
they  have  ceased  to  greatly  underbid  other  laborers. 
Their  organization  has,  in  fact,  been  used  in  some 
instances  to  effect  an  increase  in  the  prices  paid 
forl^contract  work. 

Intensive  Crops  require  much  Seasonal  Labor.  — 

“ That  California  should  give  employment  to  more 
Japanese  farm  laborers  than  the  other  states  of 
the  West  is  due  mainly  to  the  greater  specialization 
of  large  districts  in  intensive  agriculture  and  be- 
cause they  were  convenient  substitutes  for  the 
disappearing  Chinese  in  those  industries  which 
had  been  built  up  with  comparatively  few  white 
hand  laborers.  These  intensive  crops  require  large 
numbers  of  handworkers  at  certain  stages  in  their 
production  and  it  has  been  most  difficult  to  secure 

II2 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 

these  temporary  laborers.  The  migratory  Jap- 
anese have  assumed  such  great  importance  in  the 
agricultural  districts  of  the  state  by  supplying 
the  greater  part  of  this  urgent  demand  for  seasonal 
workers.  They  have  been  well  adapted  to  the 
disagreeable  handwork  and  have  generally  been 
secured  at  lower  wages  than  white  men.  They 
have  been  convenient  for  ranchers  to  secure  through 
' bosses,’  for  they  are  well  organized  into  ‘ gangs,’ 
as  has  been  described  elsewhere  in  this  report, 
while  white  men  are  not  organized  and  so  are  more 
difficult  to  secure,  and  with  Japanese  available, 
few  white  ranchers  have  made  any  effort  to  find 
white  men  for  such  work.  Like  the  Chinese,  they 
have  put  up  with  poor  living  quarters  and  have 
boarded  themselves,  which  has  been  a convenience 
and  a saving  to  the  ranchers.  The  prominence  of 
Japanese  in  farm  work  has  been  confined  mainly 
to  temporary  handwork,  but  in  recent  years  they 
have  become  more  firmly  established  in  regular 
handwork  also,  principally  on  farms  leased  by 
their  countrymen,  but  to  a certain  extent  on  farms 
conducted  by  white  men  as  well.” 

Japanese  as  Seasonal  Laborers.  — The  Commis- 
sion then  goes  on  to  state  that  most  of  the  Japanese 
farm  laborers  are  seasonal  workers,  employed  only 
during  busy  seasons  in  the  production  of  crops  in- 
volving much  hand  labor  — work  distasteful  to 
the  native-born  and  a large  percentage  of  the  Euro- 
pean immigrants.  Not  only  was  most  of  the  work 
done  distasteful,  partly  because  of  its  character, 
partly  because  it  had  been  ” tainted  ” by  Asiatics, 
but  an  acute  problem  presented  itself  to  the  farmers 

I13 


I 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


of  a community  specializing  in  the  growing  of  a 
few  intensive  crops  in  the  shortage  of  local  labor 
during  the  harvesting,  and,  in  the  growing  of  beets, 
during  the  hoeing  and  thinning  season. 

The  problem  as  it  presented  itself  in  a few  com- 
munities where  found  in  most  acute  form  is  shown 
by  the  following  details.^ 

The  Labor  Problem  in  Placer  County.  — The 
Newcastle  district  in  Placer  County,  embracing 
14,000  acres  of  foothill  orchard  land,  produces 
cherries,  peaches,  pears,  plums,  grapes,  and  straw- 
berries. Nearly  all  of  the  developed  land  is  de- 
voted to  these  crops  and  many  laborers  are  needed 
for  picking  and  packing  the  fruit  for  shipment.  A 
compilation  of  the  data  secured  from  46  orchardists 
gave  the  following  number  of  laborers  employed 
by  them  during  the  year  : 


Month 

Nuuber  of 
Laborers 
Employed 

Month 

Number  of 
Laborers 
Employed 

January  . . . 

91 

July 

347 

February  . . . 

98 

August  .... 

284 

March  .... 

99 

September  . . . 

265 

April  .... 

133 

October  .... 

II5 

May  .... 

345 

November  . . . 

76 

June  .... 

378 

December 

75 

Along  the  Lower  Sacramento.  — Along  the 
lower  Sacramento  the  farmers  specialize  in  growing 
beans,  asparagus,  and  potatoes.  Data  secured 
from  84  farmers  in  three  communities  gave  the 

‘ See  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  8-16. 

1 14 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 

following  results.  For  single  communities  the  vari- 
ation would  be  greater. 


Month 

Number  of 
Laborers 
Employed 

Month 

Number  of 
Laborers 
Employed 

January  . . . 

438 

July  

I, III 

February  . . . 

689 

August  .... 

693 

March  .... 

1,017 

September  . . . 

626 

April  .... 

1,215 

October  .... 

595 

May  .... 

1,320 

November  . . . 

437 

June  .... 

1,337 

December  . . . 

433 

In  the  Vaca  Valley.  — The  Vaca  Valley  is  de- 
voted to  deciduous  fruit  growing.  “ Of  1,143 
employees  on  19  ranches  from  which  data  were 
taken  in  this  valley,  134  were  employed  regularly 
throughout  the  year,  while  1,009  found  employ- 
ment only  temporarily  and  irregularly  for  a period 
of  3 to  12  weeks  during  the  harvest.”  ^ To  meet 
the  seasonal  demand  2,000  or  more  laborers  had  to 
be  secured  from  other  places.  The  Watsonville 
and  Fresno  districts  were  similarly  circumstanced. 
The  beet  fields  and  berry  patches  make  heavy 
requirements  for  limited  periods. 

The  Japanese  and  the  Needs  of  Such  Communi- 
ties.— The  organized,  nomadic  Japanese  fitted  well 
the  needs  of  such  communities  as  these.  They,  the 
Hindus  and  the  Mexicans,  and  before  them  the 
Chinese,  permitted  the  farmers  to  utilize  to  the  full 
the  opportunities  presented  by  favorable  soil  and 
climate  — and  in  advance  of  a large  settled  popula- 

1 Immigration  Commission,  cited  above,  p.  10. 

II5 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

tion.  They  fitted  so  much  the  better  into  this 
scheme  of  things  because  they  were  sheltered  in  the 
contracting  “boss’s  camp,’’  as  in  Southern  Cali- 
fornia, or  in  the  familiar  bunk  house  on  the  ranch, 
and  provided  for  their  own  subsistence.  While  less 
well  liked  than  the  Chinese  because  of  their  ambition 
to  rise,  because  of  occasional  failure  to  live  up  to 
contract  obligations,  because  of  the  use  of  organiza- 
tion to  secure  advances  in  wages,  and  because  of  the 
haste  with  which  work  was  done  on  a piece  basis, 
the  farmers  employing  them  in  1909  regarded  them 
as  fairly  efficient  in  handwork  and  necessary  to  the 
successful  prosecution  of  their  undertakings. 

Reference  has  been  made  to  the  underbidding 
formerly  resorted  to  rather  generally  by  the  Japanese. 
It  has  been  stated,  also,  that  even  before  the  present 
restrictions  had  been  placed  on  immigration,  their 
wages  had  risen  until  they  approached  the  wages 
paid  white  laborers.  Something  further  must  be 
said  concerning  the  wages  paid  the  races  competing 
for  employment,  for  the  statistical  data  available 
in  numerous  cases  have  been  carelessly  and  im- 
properly used. 

Wage  Data.  — The  investigations  of  the  Immi- 
gration Commission  leave  no  doubt  of  the  under- 
bidding which  had  obtained  on  the  part  of  the 
Japanese.  Though  there  had  been  an  advance  in 
wages,  partly  because  of  restrictions  imposed  in 
1907  upon  the  further  immigration  of  laborers,  and 
the  Japanese  were  no  longer  the  cheap  labor  they 
had  been,  it  was  generally  true  in  1909  that  they 
were  paid  somewhat  less  than  white  men  where 

I16 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 

working  on  a day- wage  basis.  Underbidding  for 
work  to  be  done  at  piece  rates  or  under  contract 
had  practically  ceased,  though  some  instances  of 
it  were  still  found,  as  here  and  there  in  the  citrus- 
fruit  industry  in  the  southern  part  of  the  state.  ^ 
But  taking  day  wages  only  for  comparison,  the 
statement  that  “ in  most  districts  of  the  state 
there  is  a discrimination  of  about  25  cents  per  day 
in  favor  of  white  men  as  against  J apanese  and  other 
Asiatics  engaged  in  the  same  work,  although  in  a 
few  localities  for  seasonal  work  the  day  wages  are 
the  same  for  both  classes  of  laborers”  ^ was  true  in 
1909.  The  discrimination  directed  especially 
against  Japanese  and  East  Indians  was  most  no- 
ticeable and  prevalent  in  the  citrus-fruit  industry. 

” In  Southern  California  nearly  all  of  the  white 
pickers  and  a large  part  of  the  Mexicans  were,  in 
1909,  paid  $1.75  or  $2  per  day,  while  the  Jap- 
anese were  paid  from  $1.50  to  $1.75.  The  Jap- 
anese usually  received  25  cents  less  per  day  than 
white  men,  and  as  a rule,  they  worked  longer  hours. 
East  Indians  in  one  community  received  only  $1.50 
per  day,  while  Japanese  were  paid  $1.75  and  white 
men  $2.  In  the  Tulare  district  the  difference  in 
wages  was  even  greater.  Of  the  114  Japanese 
pickers  reporting  data  in  this  district,  74  received 
$1.50  per  day,  and  40,  $1.75,  while  64  of  the  white 
pickers,  not  receiving  board  in  addition  to  wages, 
earned  $2  or  $2.25  per  day.  In  the  Newcastle 
deciduous-fruit  district  in  1909  Japanese  and  white 
men  as  harvest  laborers  were  paid  practically  the 

* Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  p.  42. 

* Ibid.,  Vol.  23,  p.  66. 

II7 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

same  wages,  but  East  Indians  received  about  25 
cents  less  per  day.  In  the  Vaca  Valley  for  the 
regular  work  white  men  received  slightly  higher 
wages  than  the  Japanese,  the  former  in  1908  being 
paid  from  $1.50  to  $2  per  day,  usually  $1.50  or 
$1.60,  while  Japanese  were  paid  from  $1.35  to 
$1.50,  and  in  exceptional  cases  $1.60.  In  picking 
fruit  all  races  received  the  same  pay,  except  East 
Indians  who  were  paid  about  25  cents  less  per  day. 

“ In  the  Pajaro  Valley  the  Dalmatians  and  other 
white  persons  engaged  in  the  apple  harvest  received 
from  $1.50  to  $2  per  day,  while  Japanese  were 
paid  $1.50.  Most  of  the  white  persons  received 
from  25  cents  to  50  cents  more  per  day  than  Jap- 
anese. For  regular  work  in  most  of  the  agricultural 
communities  of  the  state  Japanese  received  less 
pay  than  white  men  or,  if  they  were  paid  as  much, 
it  was  usually  because  they  worked  longer  hours 
or  the  work  was  especially  irksome.  In  many 
districts,  as  has  been  indicated,  the  Japanese  re- 
ceived less  pay  for  harvest  work  than  did  white 
men,  but  in  other  communities  all  races  received 
the  same  wages  for  similar  work.  In  one  or  two 
exceptional  cases,  however,  Japanese  harvest  labor- 
ers have  been  paid  more  than  white  help.  One 
instance  of  this  was  during  the  prune  harvest  in 
the  Santa  Clara  Valley  in  1910,  when  Japanese 
were  paid  $2  per  day.  This  resulted  from  the 
dependence  of  this  industry  for  years  upon  Jap- 
anese labor,  so  that  the  scarcity  of  Japanese  workers 
in  1910  enabled  those  present  to  demand  much 
higher  wages  than  formerly,  and  the  growers  were 
not  prepared  to  meet  the  demands  by  bringing  in 
white  labor  to  compete  with  the  Japanese,  and 
white  men  did  not  seek  this  work  voluntarily, 

I18 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 


as  the  growers  had  been  employing  Japanese  almost 
exclusively  for  years.”  ^ 

It  should  be  added,  however,  that  most  of  the  Ital- 
ians investigated  were  employed  by  their  countrymen 
and  were  paid  as  little,  if  not  less,  than  the  Japanese. 

Lower  Wages  of  Japanese  Explained.  — The  dif- 
ferences in  wages  indicated  are  not  to  be  explained 
by  substantial  differences  in  efficiency.  In  most  in- 
stances the  Japanese  were  regarded  as  better  than 
“ the  class  of  white  men  available  for  such  work.”  ^ 
It  did  measure  substantially  the  difference  in  the 
cost  of  subsistence,  which  for  Japanese  was  reckoned 
at  20  to  30  cents  per  day,  while  for  white  men  it 
was  from  50  to  75  cents  per  day.® 

The  statements  here  made  are  borne  out  by  the 
following  table,  when  properly  interpreted.  Of  course 
only  the  averages  for  those  employed  without  board 
are  comparable,  for  they  alone  are  net  figures. 


Reguxar  with 
Board 

Regular  with- 
out Board 

Temporary 
WITH  Board 

Temporary 
WITHOUT  Board 

Num- 

ber 

Average 

Num- 

ber 

Average 

Num- 

ber. 

Average 

Num- 

ber 

Average 

Miscellane- 
ous, white 

41 1 

$1,311 

199 

$1,889 

53 

$1,286 

286 

$1,855 

Italian  . . 

lOI 

1. 108 

22 

1.667 

181 

I.I2I 

— 

— - 

Mexican 

— 

— 

85 

1.422 

— 

82 

1. 721 

Chinese 

108 

1.406 

26 

1.559 

35 

1.454 

99 

1-743 

Japanese 

93 

1.396 

863 

1.623 

40 

1. 42 1 

2,654 

1.615 

Hindu ; . . 

— 

66 

1.534 



253 

1. 441 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  41-42. 

® See  general  statement,  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol. 
24,  pp.  44-45.  ® Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  66. 

II9 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

The  dififerences  in  these  averages  are  paralleled 
in  the  averages  obtained  by  the  California  Com- 
missioner of  Labor  from  his  more  inclusive  statis- 
tical investigation.  As  reported  by  Commissioner 
MacKenzie  in  his  summary  given  to  the  press 
May  30,  1910,  “ The  average  wage  paid  by  white 
farmers  to  white  help  was  $1.38  per  day  with 
board  and  $1.80  per  day  without  board  and  to  the 
Japanese  $1.49  per  day  with  board  and  $1.54  per 
day  without  board.”  Taking  the  commissioner’s 
figures  by  occupations  we  find  them  to  have  been  as 
follows : ^ 


OccuPAnoN 

Whites 

Japanese 

With  Board 

Without  Board 

With  Board 

Without  Board 

Num- 
ber on 
fixed 
wage 

Average 
wage 
per  day 

Number 
on  fixed 
wage 

Average 
wage 
per  day 

Num- 

ber 

on 

fixed 

wage 

Average 
wage 
per  day 

Number 
on  fixed 
wage 

Aver- 
age 
wage 
per  day 

Berry  pickers 

— 

— - 

9 

$1.86 

36 

$1-54 

59 

$1.63 

Celery  cutters 

— 

— 

20 

1.50 

10 

1.50 

lOI 

1.50 

Cultivators 

392 

$1.20 

141 

1.69 

6 

1.62 

127 

1-34 

Farm  hands 

1,490 

I-3I 

1,187 

1.70 

150 

1.44 

2,026 

1-47 

Fruit  pickers 

455 

I-3I 

1,424 

1-73 

12 

1-54 

3,186 

1.58 

Grape  pickers 

lOI 

1-25 

147 

2.00 

29 

1.72 

929 

1-75 

Hoers 

— 

— 

273 

1.88 

— 

274 

1.69 

Laborers 

II3 

1.30 

186 

1.84 

I 

1. 00 

1,067 

1-45 

Packers 

14 

1. 00 

165 

1.78 

— _ 

— 

440 

1-55 

Pruners 

226 

1.23 

225 

1.36 

36 

1.36 

1,408 

1-39 

Teamsters 

1,284 

1.42 

454 

2.05 

10 

1-37 

59 

1.74 

Totals  (of  all 

— — 





— 

— 

— 

— 

reported) 

4,807 

$1.38 

5.189 

$1.80 

345 

$1-49 

10,676 

$1-54 

Compiled  from  his  Fourteenth  Biennial  Report,  insert,  p.  270. 
120 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 


Competition  not  on  Equal  Terms.  — If  it  is 

granted  that  the  Japanese  were  not  of  less  efficiency 
in  the  various  employments  from  which  the  data 
used  in  this  long  discussion  have  been  drawn,  it  is 
evident  that  previous  to  1909,  and  especially  before 
immigration  was  greatly  restricted  in  1907,  the 
competition  between  the  races  was  not  on  equal 
terms.  Not  only  did  the  Japanese  have  an  advan- 
tage in  organization  and  in  lodging  and  boarding  ar- 
rangements, but  their  wages  were  generally  lower. 

Japanese  Labor  and  Agricultural  Expansion.  — 
Some  other  points  already  touched  on  briefly  may 
well  be  discussed  further  in  order  that  the  various 
phases  of  the  agricultural  situation  may  be  seen  in 
proper  perspective.  The  lower  rates  of  pay  of 
agricultural  laborers  had  not  a little  to  do  with  the 
agricultural  expansion  which  has  been  witnessed. 
The  presence  of  a nomadic  labor  force,  so  fluid  that 
some  migrated  from  northern  California  to  the 
opposite  extreme  of  the  state  in  the  course  of  the 
twelve  months,  and  the  ease  with  which  its  daily 
needs  could  be  provided  for  made  it  possible  to  ex- 
pand by  developing  the  beet  and  other  industries 
in  new  territory,  in  advance  of  a settled  population 
at  all  commensurate  with  the  enterprises  under- 
taken. Again,  it  has  been  chiefly  the  Japanese 
who  have  been  employed  in  out-of-the-way  places 
under  trying  conditions,  as  along  the  Lower  Sacra- 
mento River,  and  it  has  been  largely  their  labor 
which  has  developed  the  country  so  as  to  make  it 
habitable  for  a settled  population.  Finally,  they 
have  done  at  about  the  usual  price  the  “ squat 

121 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

work  ” in  the  strawberry  and  celery  patches,  in  the 
raisin  vineyards,  and  the  sugar-beet  industry,  when 
white  men  would  have  been  hard  to  secure  except  at 
considerably  higher  wages.  It  is  true,  of  course, 
that  no  kind  of  farm  work  has  been  done  by  Japa- 
nese that  has  not  been  engaged  in  to  some  extent  by 
white  men.  Yet  it  is  also  true  that  such  industries 
as  require  much  stooping  or  squatting  have  been 
greatly  assisted  by  Japanese,  and  by  the  Chinese 
before  them.  Because  cheap,  because  organized, 
because  nomadic,  because  cheaply  sheltered  and 
self-subsisting,  and  because  of  their  adaptability  to 
certain  kinds  of  work  naturally  distasteful  to  and 
arduous  for  white  men,  the  agricultural  develop- 
ment of  the  state  owes  much  to  the  Japanese 
laborers.  Much  of  California’s  agriculture  was 
based  upon  Chinese  labor;  by  Japanese  labor  it 
was  not  only  supported  but  developed  and  some 
new  branches,  such  as  the  growing  of  strawberries, 
introduced. 

The  Real  Problem.  — The  expansion  of  agricul- 
ture has  created  new  opportunities  on  the  farm  and 
in  the  packing  and  shipping  centers.  The  demand 
for  the  labor  of  teamsters,  of  packers,  of  shipping 
clerks,  and  others  has  been  increased  where  the 
expansion  due  to  Japanese  labor  has  exceeded  the 
rise  of  the  Japanese  as  a part  of  the  labor  supply. 
Only  in  exceptional  instances  did  they  do  much  of 
this  work  in  1909.  Taking  the  interests  of  all 
classes  into  consideration,  it  would  be  difficult,  if 
not  impossible,  to  show  that  Japanese  labor  had  not 
been  an  asset  to  the  rural  communities  of  California 


122 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 


SO  far  as  immediate  pecuniary  considerations  are 
concerned.  But  the  real  problem  is  found  in  the 
development  of  a capitalistic  agriculture  with  high 
land  values,  retarding  the  natural  subdivision  of  the 
land  and  its  settlement  by  families  producing  a num- 
ber of  crops  and  doing  most  of  their  own  work.  The 
development  of  this  capitalistic  agriculture  was 
accompanied  to  some  extent  by  subdivision  of  the 
land  and  settlement  by  Japanese  as  tenant  or  as 
landowning  farmers.  The  problem  connected  with 
this  will  receive  attention  later. 

Recent  Developments  not  Significant.  — The 
really  important  things  connected  with  the  Japa- 
nese problem  so  far  as  agricultural  labor  is  concerned 
lie  in  the  past.  Few  of  the  developments  since 
the  investigations  by  the  Immigration  Commission 
and  the  California  Labor  Commissioner  have  any 
particular  significance.  Those  developments  may 
be  traced,  however,  incidental  to  a presentation  of 
public  opinion  and  the  problem  of  agricultural 
labor  as  it  is  now  found. 

Supply  of  Japanese  Labor  Diminished.  — The 
number  of  Japanese  laborers  available  for  employ- 
ment by  white  farmers  has  diminished,  and  in 
certain  communities  to  a marked  degree.  The 
total  number  of  such  laborers  has  decreased  with 
restrictions  on  immigration  and  the  increase  in  the 
number  of  Japanese  farmers.  The  number  of  un- 
skilled temporary  laborers  has  shown  a still  greater 
diminution,  for  slowly  the  Japanese  have  risen  to  the 
position  of  regular  hands  and  teamsters.  This 
advance,  however,  has  not  been  sufficient  to  have 

123 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

any  noticeable  effect  upon  the  wages  and  condi- 
tions of  these  positions  which  white  men  find  more 
to  their  liking  than  the  seasonal  hand  work.  As  in 
the  case  of  the  Chinese,  when  their  numbers  di- 
minished, the  wages  of  Japanese  have  increased. 
About  Vacaville  they  are  paid  $2  and  $2.25  dur- 
ing the  harvest  season.  Two  dollars  is  the  usual 
. rate  for  picking  fruit  and  berries  in  every  locality 
visited,  and  the  wage  for  packers  is  usually 
somewhat  higher.  Lower  payment  of  Japanese 
than  of  white  men  engaged  in  the  same  occupations 
is  almost  entirely  a matter  of  the  past.  Piece 
rates,  so  important  in  harvest  work  and  the  almost 
universal  rule  in  the  cultivation  and  harvesting  of 
sugar  beets,  are  not  only  uniform  for  “ white  ” and 
Japanese  laborers,  but  they  have  shown  a tendency 
about  Fresno  and  in  other  localities  visited  to 
increase  somewhat.  Here  and  there  the  Mexicans 
are  proving  to  be  the  best  bidders  for  such  work  and 
undertake  it  for  less  money  than  the  Japanese. 

New  Sources  of  Labor.  — The  number  of  Asiatic 
nomadic  workers  has  very  much  diminished. 
Though  a considerable  number  migrate  to  and  from 
certain  communities,  some  of  them  moving  even 
from  northern  to  southern  California,  they  are,  in 
nearly  every  locality  visited,  much  fewer  than  five 
years  ago.  In  some  cases  the  farmers  have  re- 
sorted to  the  more  extensive  use  of  Mexicans  and 
Hindus  to  meet  their  needs.  This  is  especially 
true  of  the  sugar-beet  growers  of  the  southern  part 
of  the  state  and  of  the  raisin  growers  of  the  Fresno 
district.  In  spite  of  the  assistance  received  from 

124 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 


the  larger  number  of  wives  who  work  more  or  less 
regularly  in  the  fields,  even  many  of  the  Japanese 
farmers  are  using  Mexicans  and  Hindus  and  not  a 
few  are  employing  some  “ white  ” laborers.  The 
labor  at  hand  in  the  community  appears  to  be  more 
carefully  and  more  fully  utilized  in  some  cases.  In 
more  instances  school  children  (during  vacation)  and 
others  are  being  gathered  up  each  day  and  trans- 
ported by  wagon  to  the  orchards.  There  is  little 
evidence,  however,  of  any  radical  changes  in  the 
methods  employed.  The  provision  for  housing 
and  boarding  laborers  has  changed  little  and  the 
farmers  proceed  individually  to  secure  needed 
help  as  they  have  always  done.  Wages  in  the 
orchards  and  fields  are  still  lower  than  those  paid 
temporary  workers  in  sugar  factories  and  packing 
plants  where  employment  is  seasonal.  Neverthe- 
less the  problem  of  securing  the  number  of  laborers 
needed  has  not  given  much  difficulty  except  in 
isolated  instances,  for  industry  has  been  badly 
depressed  on  the  Pacific  Coast  and  many  white 
laborers  have  sought  work  in  the  country.  There  is 
no  dearth  of  labor.  The  acreage  of  crops  has 
expanded  much  as  before  and  the  general  level  of 
wages,  and  especially  of  piece  rates,  has  not  ad- 
vanced very  much.  Consequently  there  is  no 
general  demand  among  farmers  for  more  agricul- 
tural laborers  of  any  class.  They  are  looking 
forward  to  a large  influx  of  South  European  immi- 
grants by  way  of  the  Panama  Canal  in  the  near 
future,  and,  unfortunately,  the  newcomers  are 
expected  in  some  way  to  fit  into  the  situation 

125 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

practically  unchanged,  though  shaped  largely  years 
ago  by  Chinese  labor. 

Little  Difficulty  at  Present  in  securing  Needed 
Labor.  — The  only  important  instance  found  dur- 
ing my  investigations  in  which  any  difficulty  had 
been  experienced  this  year  in  securing  needed  labor, 
and  where  it  was  strongly  urged  that  more  Asiatic 
laborers  should  be  permitted  to  come  in  — the 
Chinese  greatly  preferred  — was  in  one  community 
where  the  harvesting  of  some  18,000  acres  of  beets 
was  about  to  begin.  There,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that 
the  contract  price  paid  for  the  handwork  had  been 
increased  somewhat,  it  had  been  difficult  to  secure  a 
sufficient  number  of  Japanese  to  do  the  field  work. 
Farther  south  Mexicans  have  been  very  largely 
substituted  for  the  Japanese  who  formerly  shared 
the  work  with  them,  and  the  expense  of  growing 
beets  has  increased  but  slightly.  The  Mexicans 
have  proved  satisfactory  and  the  few  supervisors  of 
agricultural  work  conferred  with  had  no  desire  for 
more  Asiatic  laborers.  The  work  is  being  arranged 
so  as  to  give  employment  most  of  the  year,  and  some 
effort  is  being  made  to  have  Mexican  families  settle 
in  the  country  where  their  labor  is  needed. 

MacKenzie’s  Conclusion.  — The  California  Com- 
missioner of  Labor,  in  his  summary  given  to  the 
press,  expressed  an  opinion  which  has  always  been 
interpreted  to  mean  that  Asiatic  labor  was  indispen- 
sable to  the  agriculture  of  the  state.  He  said  : 

“ It  is  not  mere  opinion,  based  on  consensus  of 
observation,  no  theory  predicated  on  an  analysis 

126 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 

of  conditions  and  requirements,  but  the  positive 
expression  of  a majority  of  the  growers  of  fruits 
and  such  products  as  are  affected  by  the  demand, 
that  this  labor  must  continue  to  be  drawn  from 
sources  beyond  the  United  States.  The  competency 
of  both  Chinese  and  Japanese  to  meet  all  the  re- 
quirements by  these  industries  of  the  orchard,  the 
vineyard,  and  the  field  is  unquestioned  and  un- 
questionable.” 

Senate  Resolution  of  Disapproval.  — This  sum- 
mary and  opinion  interpreted  to  be  favorable  to  a 
further  immigration  of  Asiatic  laborers,  called  forth 
very  general  protest  and  it  was  for  this  reason 
that  the  report  was  not  published  when  a sup- 
plementary appropriation  might  have  been  made 
by  the  legislature  for  that  purpose.  The  report 
was  buried  and  the  State  Senate  expressed  its 
disapprobation  of  the  Commissioner’s  findings  in 
a resolution  presented  by  the  present  Commissioner 
General  of  Immigration  and  passed  without  a dis- 
senting vote  being  recorded.  The  resolution  reads  : 

“ Whereas,  the  State  Labor  Commissioner  has, 
in  his  report  concerning  Japanese  laborers,  expressed 
his  opinion  of  the  necessity  for  such  laborers  in  this 
State,  and  thus  without  authority  misrepresented 
the  wishes  of  the  people  of  this  commonwealth, 
therefore  be  it  Resolved,  that  the  opinion  of  such 
Labor  Commissioner  is  hereby  disapproved  by  this 
Senate.”  ^ 

Two  Personal  Conclusions.  — From  my  perso- 
nal investigations  made  for  the  Immigration  Com- 
^ See  California  Senate  Journal,  1910,  p.  39. 

127 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

mission  two  things  seemed  clear:  (i)  that  most 
of  the  farmers  employing  Asiatic  laborers,  assuming 
that  all  of  the  essential  elements  in  the  situation 
were  to  remain  unchanged,  regarded  Asiatic  labor 
as  essential,  and  (2)  that  the  majority  of  those 
farmers  did  not  wish  any  further  immigration  of 
Asiatic  laborers.  Nor  was  there  any  inconsistency 
in  holding  both  of  these  views  at  the  same  time. 
One  question  was,  would  the  existing  supply  not 
be  sufficient  for  imperative  needs?  Another  was, 
should  a readjustment  and  a change  in  the  essential 
elements  in  the  situation,  shaped  by  Asiatic  labor, 
not  be  made  so  that  such  Jabor  would  not  be  essen- 
tial ? Another  question  was,  would  it  not  be  well 
to  make  some  sacrifice,  if  necessary,  because  of 
other  things  than  the  immediate  welfare  of  some 
specialized  industries  involved  in  the  immigration 
from  across  the  Pacific?  It  was,  indeed,  a common 
experience  in  1908  and  1909  to  have  a farmer  or 
an  orchardist  express  the  opinion  that  if  everything 
else  were  to  remain  the  same,  then  the  character  of 
the  labor  supply  must  remain  the  same,  and  the 
further  opinion  that  some  change  should  be  made 
to  obviate  the  necessity  of  such  a supply  of  labor 
and  some  sacrifice  be  undergone  if  necessary  in 
doing  so.  The  Commissioner  of  Labor  undoubtedly 
summarized  accurately  the  preponderance  of  the 
initial  testimony  in  the  case.  The  California 
Senate  undoubtedly  expressed  the  view  held  by 
all  but  a small  minority  of  the  people  of  the  state 
that  any  immigration  of  laborers  to  fit  into  the  old 
situation  in  the  old  way  was  undesirable. 

128 


THE  JAPANESE  AS  AGRICULTURAL  LABORERS 


Nor  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  are 
now  less  adversely  criticized  by  their  employers 
than  formerly  because  there  is  less  misunderstanding 
of  instructions  given  and  fewer  failures  to  live  up 
to  the  provisions  of  contracts  entered  into  and 
greater  efficiency  shown  as  a result  of  experience 
in  the  work  to  be  done,  has  there  been  any  great 
change  in  opinion  in  these  matters.  At  Fresno, 
at  Sacramento,  at  Salinas,  at  Riverside,  and  at 
several  other  centers  of  highly  intensive  farming, 
some  men,  largely  big  farmers  or  shippers,  recently 
expressed  themselves  to  me  as  feeling  that  there 
was  a distinct  need  of  Asiatic  laborers,  if  the  wel- 
fare of  the  enterprises  they  were  engaged  in  were 
to  be  maintained  and  fostered.  But  a review  of 
my  notes  shows  that  in  four  cases  in  five  those 
who  expressed  themselves  as  of  this  opinion,  were 
not  in  favor  of  any  greater  immigration  of  Asiatics 
than  we  now  have.  Those  who  did  favor  such  an 
immigration  felt  that  it  should  be  “ limited  to 
needs  ” and  almost  without  exception  expressed  a 
preference  for  a limited  immigration  of  Chinese. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  great  preponderance 
of  opinion  among  the  farmers  of  California  is  against 
any  distinctly  more  liberal  immigration  policy  than 
the  United  States  now  has.  Any  change  in  senti- 
ment during  the  last  five  or  six  years  has  been  away 
from  a liberal  policy  to  meet  the  needs  of  the  labor 
supply.  The  expectations  of  a large  influx  from 
the  Mediterranean  countries,  the  increased  number 
of  white  men  seeking  employment  in  the  country, 
and,  without  doubt,  the  advance  made  by  the 
K 129 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Japanese  as  farmers  have  been  important  in  bring- 
ing about  a somewhat  closer  approach  to  a una- 
nimity of  opinion  on  the  part  of  California  farmers, 
that  the  present  policy  of  very  great  restriction  of 
Asiatic  immigration  should  not  be  departed  from. 
Whether  this  opinion  is  right  or  wrong,  serious 
investigators  are  forced  to  the  conclusion  that  it  is 
undesirable  to  have  an  immigration  of  any  race, 
whatever  its  color  or  its  source,  if  it  is  to  fit  into 
the  old  scheme  of  things.  In  her  natural  develop- 
ment California  has  advanced  beyond  the  point 
where  it  is  desirable  to  admit  immigrants  to  main- 
tain or  increase  a bunk-house  population  with  the 
conditions  which  naturally  accompany  it. 


130 


CHAPTER  VI 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 

Japanese  Farms  and  Acreage  in  California.  — 

The  Japanese  are  more  conspicuous  as  farmers  in 
California  than  in  any  other  state.  Of  a total  of 
2,502  farms,  embracing  157,259  acres,  recorded  in  a 
bulletin  recently  issued  by  the  Census  Bureau  ^ as 
being  controlled  by  Japanese  in  1910,  1,816,  with 
an  aggregate  acreage  of  99,254,  were  in  that  state. 
Thus  California  had  72.6  per  cent  of  the  farmers 
and  63.1  per  cent  of  the  farm  lands  controlled  by 
the  members  of  that  race  as  owners  or  tenants. 
The  value  of  the  land  was  $20,239,638;  of  the 
buildings,  $1,177,897;  of  implements,  $540,685;  of 
domestic  animals,  poultry,  and  bees,  $750,936. 

Other  Figures.  — These  Census  figures  relat- 
ing to  the  number  and  acreage  of  farms  are 
considerably  smaller  than  those  reported  in  the 
Japanese- American  Yearbook,  where  the  name  of 
each  owner  or  tenant  and  his  acreage  are  given. 
The  difference  is  explained  in  part,  it  would  appear, 
by  the  fact  that  certain  classes,  such  as  those  doing 
a part  of  the  farm  work  and  sharing  the  product  or 
receiving  a price  agreed  upon,  included  in  the  one 
are  excluded  from  the  other.  But  whatever  the 
explanation  of  the  difference,  the  total  acreage 
owned  or  leased  by  Japanese  in  1909  was  reported 
in  the  Yearbook  as  153,683  as  against  the  total  of 
1 Bulletin  127  (1914). 

I3I 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

99,254  reported  by  the  Census  for  1910.  The 
corresponding  figure  for  1913^  was  281,687  acres. 
Of  this  total,  26,707  acres  were  reported  as  owned, 
255,980  as  leased  or  worked  " under  contract.” 
Though  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  these  figures 
and  the  growth  of  Japanese  farming  indicated  by 
them  are  exaggerated,  a considerable  number  of  pur- 
chases and  many  new  leases  have  been  made  during 
the  last  three  or  four  years.  The  county  assessor’s 
reports  show  that  in  March,  1912,  Japanese  owned 
331  tracts  of  land  embracing  12,726  acres. ^ An  un- 
usually large  number  of  purchases  were  made  during 
the  succeeding  fifteen  months,  and  especially  during 
the  few  months  alien  land  bills  were  under  consid- 
eration, so  that  perhaps  the  total  acreage  now  owned 
approaches  20,000.  It  is  not  unlikely,  moreover, 
that  lands  now  owned  or  leased  in  California  have 
a combined  acreage  greater  than  the  total  reported 
by  the  Census  for  all  the  states  in  1910. 

Japanese  Farming  largely  Intensive.  — As  would 
be  expected,  most  of  the  farming  carried  on  by 
Japanese  in  California  is  of  the  intensive  kind  in 
which  they  have  been  conspicuously  employed  as 
laborers.  This  is  very  well  shown  by  the  data 
collected  by  the  California  Commissioner  of  Labor 
five  years  ago.  Though  the  number  of  farms  in- 
vestigated was  perhaps  less  than  four  fifths  of  the 
number  operated  by  Japanese  and  though  in  some 

1 A statistical  investigation  of  Japanese  farming  is  being  made  by 
the  Japanese  Association  of  America,  but  the  results  are  not  yet 
available. 

^ Fourteenth  Biennial  Report  of  the  California  Labor  Commis- 
sioner, p.  633. 

132 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 


respects  the  figures  are  now  out  of  date,  the  fol- 
lowing table  still  shows  with  a fair  degree  of  ac- 
curacy the  kind  of  farming  engaged  ind 


Crop 

No.  OF  Farms 
Reporting 

Acreage 

Reported 

Value  of  Crops 
Harvested 

Berries 

455 

4,587 

$729,731 

Citrus  fruits 

2 

20 

2,000 

Deciduous  fruits  .... 

404 

23,119 

1,751,210 

Grapes 

154 

9,657 

435,350 

Hay  and  grain  .... 

14 

910 

28,530 

Hops 

2 

273 

46,000 

Nursery  products  . . . 

64 

652 

206,770 

Sugar  beets 

32 

5,655 

271,050 

Vegetables 

531 

33,467 

2,517,160 

Miscellaneous  .... 

72 

4,914 

248,055 

Totals 

1.730 

83,252 

$6,235,856 

Their  Relative  Importance  as  Growers  of  Certain 
Crops. — Thus  the  J apanese  farmers  are  largely  grow- 
ers of  vegetables,  potatoes,  fruit,  berries,  grapes,  and 
sugar  beets.  Their  relative  importance  as  growers 
of  these  in  1910  is  shown  by  the  table  on  next  page 
compiled  from  the  reports  of  the  Census  Bureau. 
Unfortunately  data  are  not  presented  in  Bulletin  127 
for  grapes,  deciduous  fruits,  and  certain  other  crops. 

If  the  forms  of  tenure  most  closely  related  to  a 
labor  contract  had  been  included,  as  they  are  in 
the  Japanese- American  Yearbook,  the  acreage  re- 
ported for  Japanese  would  be  considerably  larger. 
Moreover,  it  is  considerably  larger  now  than  in  1910. 

‘ From  Thirteenth  Biennial  Report  of  the  California  Commis- 
sioner of  Labor,  p.  267. 


133 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


Crop 

Japa- 

nese 

Farms 

Re- 

porting 

Same 

Acreage 

Reported 

Quantity 

Grown 

Value  of 
Crop 

Acreage  of 

ALL  F ARMS  OF 
THE  State 

Strawberries  . . 

Blackberries  . . 
Raspberries  . . 
Hops  1 . . . . 
Sugar  beets  . . 
Potatoes  . . . 

Other  vegetables 
Totals  . . . 

440 

76 

122 

S 

61 

227 

742 

1,816 

2,223 

241 

463 

324 

3.332 
10,227 
7,498 
90,076  (a) 

7,873,905  (qts.) 
490,428  (qts.) 

2,173,239  (qts.) 
430,400  (lbs.) 
33,473  (tons) 
1,966,690  (bu.) 

$601,040 

33.047 

92.273. 

43,300 

184,713 

774,361 

736,904 

4,583 

2,576 

1,992 

8,391 

78,957 

72,799 

79,163 

11,389,894  {a) 

(a)  Acres  of  improved  lands  in  farms.  The  Census  does  not  re- 
port total  acreage  for  all  crops. 


Yet,  as  is  shown  by  this  table,  the  Japanese  control 
a very  small  percentage  of  all  the  improved  lands  in 
farms  and,  except  in  the  case  of  berries  and  certain 
kinds  of  vegetables,  a very  small  percentage  of  the 
land  devoted  to  different  crops.  The  only  branch  of 
agriculture  not  covered  by  this  table  in  which  the 
Japanese  control  a large  percentage  of  the  total 
acreage,  is  in  the  growing  of  deciduous  fruits. 

Most  of  their  Holdings  in  a comparatively  Few 
Localities.  — Another  fact  of  considerable  impor- 
tance is  that  most  of  the  Japanese  farmers  are  found 
in  a comparatively  few  localities  and  chiefly  those 
in  which  they  have  been  most  important  in  the 
agricultural  labor  supply.  In  the  Vaca  Valley 
in  1913  they  leased  or  owned  approximately  one 
half  of  the  land  devoted  to  the  production  of  fruit 
and  grapes.^  About  Florin  they  own  or  lease 
about  one  third  of  the  farm  lands.^  Along  the 

^ See  Chapter  VII. 

134 


^lUd. 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 


American  River,  back  of  Sacramento,  Japanese 
and  a few  Chinese  own  or  lease  forty  of  forty-two 
ranches.  In  the  “ Newcastle  district,”  where  in 
certain  localities  most  of  the  land  is  devoted  to  the 
production  of  grapes,  deciduous  fruit,  and  straw- 
berries, the  total  acreage  in  1909  being  about 
14,000,  the  Immigration  Commission  found  that 
6,992  acres  of  this  were  owned  or  leased  by  Jap- 
anese.^ Of  approximately  70,000  acres  in  ten 
districts  along  the  Lower  Sacramento,  the  Immi- 
gration Commission  found  that  the  Japanese  leased 
something  more  than  twenty-five  per  cent  in  1909. 
Likewise  of  42,682  acres  in  fourteen  large  tracts 
along  the  Lower  San  Joaquin,  the  Japanese  were 
leasing  8,692.  Near  Livingston  the  Japanese  con- 
trol about  3,000  acres,  nearly  all  of  it  in  adjoining 
farms. 2 In  view  of  such  facts  as  these,  it  is  not 
surprising  that  1,540  of  the  1,816  Japanese  farms 
and  70,614  of  the  99,254  acres  controlled  by  them, 
as  recorded  in  the  Census  for  1910,  were  in  twelve 
of  the  fifty-eight  counties  of  the  state.® 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Volume  24,  pp.  413  and  420. 

^ See  Chapter  VII. 

® These  twelve  counties  and  the  number  and  acreage  of  farms  in 
each,  as  reported  in  Bulletin  127,  were  as  follows : 


County 

Number 
OF  Farms 

Acreage 

County 

Number 
OF  Farms 

Acreage 

Fresno  . . . 

Imperial  . . 

Los  Angeles  . 
Merced  . . . 

Monterey  . . 
Orange  . . . 

192 

51 

531 

18 

37 

77 

11,185 

3,348 

6,173 

2,620 

3,818 

3,757 

Placer  . . . 

Sacramento  . 
San  Joaquin  . 
Santa  Clara  . 
Solano  . . . 

Yolo  . . . 

134 

189 

79 

124 

55 

53 

7,465 

8,345 

12,730 

2,201 

4,142 

4,830 

135 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Size  of  Farms.  — Another  matter  of  importance 
relates  to  the  size  of  farms.  In  the  following  table 
the  distribution  of  all  farms  in  California  and  that 
of  i,6oi  controlled  by  Japanese  and  reported  by 
the  California  Commissioner  of  Labor  are  shown: 


Size  of  Farms 

Percentage  of  all 
Farms  (0) 

Percentage  of  1601 
Japanese  Farms  (6) 

Under  10  acres 

12.0 

27.7 

10  to  19  acres 

13-5 

14.9 

20  to  49  acres 

234 

29.4 

50  to  99  acres 

12. 1 

13.8 

100  acres  and  over 

38-9 

14-3 

(a)  From  Census,  1910. 

(&)  From  Thirteenth  Biennial  Report  of  California  Commis- 
sioner of  Labor,  p.  266. 


In  more  detail  the  size  of  Japanese  holdings 
investigated  by  the  California  Commissioner  of 
Labor  was  as  follows  : 


Size  of  Farms 

Number. of  Farms 

Per  cent  of  Farms 

Under  5 acres 

192 

12.0 

5 to  9 acres  

253 

157 

10  to  19  acres  

239 

14.9 

20  to  29  acres 

210 

I3I 

30  to  39  acres 

128 

8.0 

40  to  49  acres 

132 

8.3 

50  to  75  acres 

147 

9.2 

75  to  99  acres 

72 

4-5 

100  to  199  acres 

150 

94 

200  acres  and  over 

78 

4-9 

Totals 

1,601 

100.0 

136 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 

Large  farms  still  predominate  in  California. 
Thus  in  1910,  38.9  per  cent  contained  100  acres 
and  over.  The  average  was  316.7  acres.  Most 
of  those  held  by  Japanese,  however,  are  small. 
Almost  an  eighth  of  those  investigated  by  the  Com- 
missioner of  Labor  contained  less  than  five  acres, 
more  than  one  fourth  less  than  ten  acres,  more 
than  two  fifths  less  than  twenty  acres,  more  than 
seventy  per  cent  less  than  fifty  acres,  and  only  14.3 
per  cent,  one  hundred  acres  and  over.  The  aver- 
age of  the  1,816  Japanese  farms  reported  by  the 
Census  was  only  54.7  acres.  The  small  size  of 
most  of  these  farms  is  explained,  of  course,  by  the 
fact  that  they  are  devoted  to  intensive  agriculture. 
Those  devoted  to  the  production  of  strawberries 
and  green  vegetables  usually  contain  from  one  to 
ten  acres,  while  those  devoted  to  the  production 
of  potatoes,  beans,  asparagus,  and  the  like  are 
usually  under  fifty  acres.  In  the  production  of 
fruit  the  holdings  are  also,  as  a rule,  small,  for 
usually  only  the  part  of  the  farm  in  orchard  is 
leased.  The  leases  of  land  for  the  growing  of  sugar 
beets  frequently  cover  100  acres  or  more,  but  tracts 
of  forty  or  fifty  acres,  or  even  much  less,  are  found. 

Progress  of  the  Japanese  as  Farmers.  — Of  much 
greater  interest  than  the  things  thus  far  discussed 
are  the  progress  the  Japanese  have  made  as  farmers, 
the  reasons  for  the  progress  made,  and  the  effects 
upon  the  communities  in  which  they  have  settled. 

As  against  the  1,816  farms  embracing  99,254 
acres  reported  by  the  Census  in  1910,  29  farms, 
embracing  4,698  acres,  were  reported  as  being 

137 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


owned  or  leased  by  Japanese  in  1900.  The  figures 
reported  in  the  Japanese- American  Yearbook  each 
year  since  1904  are  not  comparable  with  these,  but 
may  be  presented  in  summary  form  for  1904, 
1909,  and  1913. 


Year 

Acres  Owned 

Acres  Leased 

Total 

1904 

1909 

1913 

2,442 

16,449.5 

26,707 

54.831 

137.233.5 

255.980  (a) 

57.273 

153.683 
281,687  (a) 

(a)  These  figures  for  1913  include  an  unknown  but  rather  large 
acreage  “under  contract”  excluded  from  the  figures  given  for  1904 
and  1909. 


Progress  has  been  Rapid.  — Though  it  is  ex- 
aggerated by  these  figures,  the  advance  of  the  Jap- 
anese as  farmers  has  been  rapid.  Not  only  have 
the  number  and  acreage  of  their  farms  increased  ; 
a general  advance  has  been  evident  in  most  com- 
munities from  contract  work  to  share  tenancy 
with  little  capital  provided  by  the  tenant,  to  share 
tenancy  where  the  tenant  furnishes  most  of  the 
capital  and  gains  some  independence  as  a farmer, 
to  cash  tenancy  where  he  usually  provides  much  of 
the  capital  required  and  is  fairly  free  from  control 
by  the  landlord,  and  then,  finally,  in  a comparatively 
few  cases,  to  land  ownership. 

Reasons  for  Progress  Made.  — The  reasons  for 
the  increasing  number  of  Japanese  farmers  are 
not  different  from  those  found  in  Colorado  and 
elsewhere,  except  that  the  conditions  in  California 

138 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 

are  more  favorable  than  elsewhere  for  the  intensive 
farming  they  are  naturally  adapted  to,  and  that 
the  landowners  have  been  more  dependent  upon 
Asiatics  for  needed  labor.  The  Japanese  are  am- 
bitious, they  find  the  wage  relation  distasteful 
and  wish  to  get  the  full  product  of  their  labor, 
they  wish  to  settle  down  and  establish  a residence 
and  a home,  and  are  capable  farmers.  Moreover, 
the  transition  from  laborer  to  farmer  carries  with 
it  distinct  social  recognition  and  the  badge  of  merit. 
These  things  being  true,  it  is  only  a question  of 
time  and  opportunity  until  they  establish  their 
independence  of  the  wage  relation.  The  oppor- 
tunity has  the  more  frequently  come  to  them 
because  of  the  place  they  have  occupied  in  the 
farm  labor  supply,  because  of  the  ease  and  con- 
venience with  which  they  could  be  provided  with 
the  necessary  shelter,  and  because  of  the  fact  that 
they,  like  the  Chinese  before  them,  have  paid  the 
highest  rent  for  land. 

Transition  from  Laborer  to  Tenant  easily  Made. 
— The  important  r61e  the  Japanese  have  played 
in  California  in  such  branches  of  agriculture  as 
require  much  handwork,  and  especially  such  as 
necessitate  much  stooping  or  squatting  and  are, 
therefore,  arduous  for  white  men,  has  been  noted 
in  the  preceding  chapter.  It  is  a general  fact 
that  the  land  tends  to  fall  into  the  possession  of 
the  race  occupying  the  pivotal  place  in  the  labor 
supply,  if  that  race  is  a capable  one.  It  has  been 
only  a slight  change  from  the  employment  of  Jap- 
anese laborers  under  a “ boss  ” to  share  tenancy 

139 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

where  the  landowner  provided  most  of  the  necessary 
equipment,  did  the  work  with  teams,  paid  the 
wages  of  the  employees,  managed  the  business  in 
all  of  its  details,  sold  the  products  and  collected 
the  selling  price,  and  then  shared  this  with  the 
tenant  after  all  bills  were  paid.  Cash  tenancy, 
with  liberal  advances  and  the  rent  collected  out 
of  the  receipts  from  crops  sold,  differs  little  except 
that  more  of  the  risk  is  taken  by  the  tenant.  To 
the  landowner,  however,  either  arrangement  has 
had  the  distinct  advantage  of  interesting  the 
“ boss  ” and  obtaining  with  a greater  degree  of 
certainty  his  cooperation  in  securing  laborers  as 
needed  and  in  supervising  them  at  work.  Most 
of  the  tenant  farming  by  Japanese  in  the  localities 
specializing  in  the  growing  of  grapes  and  deciduous 
fruit  has  grown  out  of  the  fact  that  the  Japanese 
worked  under  a “ boss  ” and  occupied  a dominant 
place  in  the  labor  supply  required  for  taking  care 
of  the  crop.  As  some  leased  their  land  and  secured 
an  advantage  in  the  labor  market,  there  was  the 
more  reason  for  others  to  do  so. 

Easily  provided  with  Shelter.  — The  J apanese, 
like  the  Chinese  before  them,  have  had  a distinct 
advantage  over  other  races  as  competitors  for  land 
in  California,  because  they  could  be  easily  and 
cheaply  provided  with  shelter.  About  Vacaville, 
Newcastle,  and  Fresno,  the  tenants  have  usually 
occupied  the  bunk  house  provided  for  Asiatic 
laborers,  while  the  landowner  has  usually  retained 
the  farm  residence  with  its  premises,  if  not  a part 
of  the  farm  land,  and  continued  to  reside  there 

140 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 


with  his  family.  If,  as  about  Los  Angeles,  at 
Alviso,  and  in  a part  of  the  Florin  district,  inten- 
sive farming  has  been  newly  introduced  and  the 
land  has  been  subdivided  into  tracts  for  that  pur- 
pose, inferior  shelters  would  suffice.  If  they  were 
provided  by  the  landowner,  they  cost  little  and 
could  easily  be  “ knocked  down  ” and  the  lumber 
used  for  other  purposes.  In  many  instances  the 
shelters  have  been  erected  by  the  tenants,  and 
with  short  tenure  they  have  usually  not  differed 
materially  from  the  bunk  houses  built  by  land- 
owners  for  their  Asiatic  laborers,  or  the  rude  shelters 
built  by  them  for  their  Asiatic  tenants.  The 
members  of  no  white  race  prominent  in  the  labor 
supply  could  be  had  as  tenants  unless  the  family 
residence  was  let  with  the  land,  or  cottages,  superior 
to  those  which  have  generally  been  provided,  were 
erected  at  the  landowner’s  expense  for  their  use. 
With  respect  to  the  kind  of  housing  required,  the 
Asiatics  have  competed  with  others  for  the  pos- 
session of  land  on  the  basis  of  a different  standard. 
It  has  been  an  important  factor  in  explaining  the 
advance  of  the  Japanese  as  tenant  farmers. 

Willingness  to  pay  High  Rents.  — Moreover,  the 
Japanese,  like  the  Chinese,  have  been  willing  to 
pay  higher  rents  than  others  for  land  — such  high 
rents,  in  fact,  that  leasing  his  land  has  given  the 
owner  a better  return  than  farming  it  himself, 
allowance  being  made  for  the  diminished  risk. 
That  they  could  afford  to  pay  relatively  high  rents 
is  explained,  in  part,  where  a new  type  of  farming 
was  introduced  by  the  Japanese,  by  the  fact  that 

141 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

their  crops  would  bear  a higher  rent  than  those 
which  had  been  grown.  When  land  worth  a few 
dollars  per  acre  for  growing  hay  is  turned  to  the 
production  of  strawberries,  it  may  be  worth  $20, 
$25,  or  even  $30  per  acre.  If  turned  to  the  pro- 
duction of  beans,  or  potatoes,  or  vegetables,  it  is 
worth  more  to  the  tenant  than  when  used  for  the 
production  of  general  crops.  But  the  relatively 
high  rents  paid  are  not  to  be  explained  entirely  in 
this  way.  Five  years  ago  the  writer  was  present 
when  a young  American  sought  to  lease  a ranch 
from  an  agent  at  Stockton.  It  was  wanted  for 
growing  potatoes.  He  first  offered  to  pay  $10, 
and  finally  $12  per  acre,  one  half  down,  the  re- 
mainder when  the  crop  was  harvested,  but  his 
offer  was  declined  because  a Japanese  had  already 
offered  $15,  a Chinese  $16,  per  acre  for  it  for  grow- 
ing the  same  crop.  The  agent  remarked : “It 
is  too  bad.  Charlie  is  one  of  the  most  industrious 
and  honest  fellows  in  this  whole  country.”  This 
agent  had  a large  number  of  ranches  on  his  “ list  ” 
and  stated  that  the  difference  in  rents  offered  in 
this  instance  was  typical.  Whether  this  was  true 
or  not,  it  is  true  that  there  were  substantial  dif- 
ferences at  that  time.  Instances  came  to  my 
attention  along  the  Lower  Sacramento  where  Jap- 
anese had  replaced  Italians  as  tenants  by  giving  a 
larger  share  of  the  crop.  Similar  instances  were 
found  in  some  other  places.  With  time  the  dif- 
ference in  rents  would-be  tenants  are  willing  to 
pay  have  diminished,  but  it  has  not  yet  disappeared. 
It  obtains  to  some  extent  about  Fresno,  for  example, 

142 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 

in  the  leasing  of  producing  vineyards.  Of  course 
other  considerations  than  the  share  of  the  crop 
enter  into  a share  lease,  but  in  general  it  may  be 
said  that  there  in  1914  the  general  rule  was  for 
the  Japanese  tenant  to  “ take  forty  and  give  sixty  ” 
per  cent,  while  other  tenants  and  landowners 
“ shared  alike.”  That  the  Japanese  have  been 
willing  to  pay  relatively  high  rents  for  agricultural 
land  has,  however,  never  been  in  dispute,  so  that 
further  detail  need  not  be  added.  Some  regard 
it  as  meritorious,  others  as  objectionable.  Other 
things  equal,  it  is  well  to  have  land  devoted  to 
those  crops  which  will  bear  the  highest  rent.  The 
point  we  are  interested  in  here,  however,  is  that 
the  strongest  competitor  for  land  is  the  one  who 
will  pay  the  highest  rent. 

Pay  high  Prices  as  Purchasers.  — Though  com- 
paratively few  Japanese  have  purchased  land,  in 
so  far  as  they  have  competed  as  purchasers  they 
have  had  the  same  advantage  in  type  of  agriculture 
and  in  standards  as  where  competing  as  tenants. 
This,  again,  has  not  been  in  dispute,  so  that  noth- 
ing more  need  be  said  with  reference  to  it. 

There  are  other  reasons  than  the  use  made  of 
land  acquired,  why  the  Japanese  can  afford  to  pay 
relatively  high  rents  or  prices  for  it.  There  have 
been,  as  we  have  seen,  decided  limitations  upon 
their  occupational  advance.  They  have  usually  been 
limited  rather  narrowly  to  the  least  attractive  and  to 
unskilled  work.  Without  the  usual  opportunity  to 
advance  as  wage  earners,  a premium  has  been  placed 
upon  farming  as  well  as  upon  shopkeeping,  and 

143 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

there  has  been  a rather  close  relation  between  the 
necessary  pecuniary  return  in  prospect  as  farmers 
or  shopkeepers  and  the  wages  they  might  earn. 

Little  Capital  required  by  Tenants.  — Before 
leaving  the  question  why  the  Japanese  have  ad- 
vanced as  tenant  farmers,  it  is  necessary  to  call 
attention  to  still  other  factors  than  those  thus  far 
mentioned.  One  is  that  usually  little  capital  has 
been  necessary  to  qualify  as  tenant  farmers.  The 
statement  that  they  have  farmed  with  other  peoples’ 
money  is  only  an  exaggerated  statement  of  a truth 
as  regards  the  majority.  Most  of  the  capital  re- 
quired is  invested  in  the  land  and  the  development 
of  orchards  and  vineyards.  This  does  not  concern 
the  tenant.  Even  cash  rents  have  usually  been 
paid  in  large  part,  and  in  some  cases  entirely, 
when  the  crops  were  harvested.  Book  accounts 
have  been  available,  frequently  with  the  land- 
owner’s guarantee,  for  supplies.  Most  of  the 
things  produced  have  been  for  a highly  organized 
market  and  liberal  advances  have  been  secured 
from  sugar  companies,  shippers,  or  packers.  In 
the  deciduous  fruit  industry,  especially,  the  com- 
petition between  shipping  firms  has  been  keen.  It 
has  not  been  unusual  for  these  firms  to  interest 
themselves  in  the  leasing  of  orchards  so  as  to  secure 
control  of  the  crop  as  well  as  to  help  in  solving  the 
problem  of  securing  the  labor  needed  to  care  for  it. 
A few  instances  have  come  to  my  attention  where 
orchards  were  purchased  or  leased,  and  then  leased 
to  Japanese  (or  possibly  to  Chinese)  tenants  so  as 
to  control  the  shipping  of  the  fruit. 

144 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 

Reduction  of  “ Raw  ” Land.  — The  explanation 
sought  would  not  be  complete  were  mention  not 
made  of  the  service  rendered  in  reducing  lands  to 
cultivation.  Though  the  Census  shows  that  90,076, 
or  about  91  per  cent  of  the  99,254  acres  of  land 
held  by  the  Japanese  in  1910,  were  “ improved,”  no 
small  part  of  it  had  been  improved  by  them.  Mr. 
Shima  has  cleared  thousands  of  acres  of  “ delta 
lands  ” of  bushes  and  tule,  drained  it,  and  reduced 
it  to  cultivation  under  trying  circumstances  and 
with  great  risk.  Waste  land  about  Florin  and  in 
the  Newcastle  district  has  been  leveled  for  irriga- 
tion, pumping  plants  installed,  and  the  land  devoted 
to  the  production  of  berries.  Other  instances  might 
be  cited.  For  such  land  there  has  been  little  demand 
on  the  part  of  men  of  other  races.  Incidental  to 
the  advance  made  by  the  Japanese  as  farmers  in 
such  instances,  a positive  contribution  of  consider- 
able importance  has  been  made  to  the  resources 
of  the  state.  Moreover,  another  contribution  has 
been  made  in  developing  orchards  about  Penryn 
and  Watsonville,  and  of  vineyards  about  Florin 
and  Fresno  while  growing  strawberries.  This  will 
be  commented  on  at  greater  length  in  the  part  of 
the  next  chapter  devoted  to  Florin.  Yet  the  con- 
tribution made,  except  in  devoting  land  to  a more 
intensive  use  than  might  otherwise  obtain,  can  be 
exaggerated.  There  has  been  no  material  improve- 
ment of  resources  in  such  instances  as  the  growing 
of  berries  and  vegetables  about  Los  Angeles,  where 
land  is  held  for  a time  and  then  vacated  because 
of  the  depletion  of  the  soil  or  the  use  of  the  land  for 

I-  145 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Other  than  agricultural  purposes.  In  some  in- 
stances, as  about  Vacaville,  the  Japanese  have 
made  no  contribution  of  importance  to  the  resources 
of  the  community  except  as  laborers.  The  orchards 
have  simply  been  leased  from  year  to  year  after 
having  been  developed  by  others. 

Effects  of  Japanese  Farming.  — In  what  has 
preceded  something  has  been  said  concerning  the 
effects  of  Japanese  farming.  These  may  now  be 
discussed  more  specifically. 

Land  Values.  Population  Changes.  — In  those 
localities  in  which  Japanese  have  settled  in  any 
considerable  number,  land  values  have  been  in- 
creased chiefly  because  of  the  higher  rental  values 
of  farms.  It  is  asserted,  however,  that  when  the 
Japanese  come  in,  others  move  out  and  their 
farms  depreciate  in  value.  There  seems  as  yet, 
however,  to  be  little  basis  in  fact  for  such  assertions. 
It  is  true  that  many  families  in  some  communities 
regard  residence  there  as  less  desirable  when  any 
foreign  race,  and  especially  an  Asiatic  race,  immi- 
grates, and  some  have  moved  elsewhere.  This 
movement  has  been  to  the  cities,  however,  and  how 
much  of  it  has  been  due  to  other  causes  it  is  im- 
possible to  say.  It  is  likely,  however,  that  most 
of  the  changes  of  residence  have  been  for  reasons 
explaining  why  some  families  move  away  from 
other  communities.  Of  more  importance  than  the 
movement  away  from  these  communities  because 
of  any  feeling  that  they  are  no  longer  desirable, 
is  the  fact  that  the  convenience  and  profit  connected 
with  leasing  has  permitted  landowners  to  live  “ in 

146 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 

town  ” or  in  cities  where  there  are  better  opportuni- 
ties, especially  for  schooling  children  and  for  social 
life.  Undoubtedly  a premium  has  been  placed  on 
tenant  farming  and  that  carries  with  it  a certain 
amount  of  absentee  landlordism,  but,  taking  the 
state  as  a whole,  the  percentage  of  tenants  in  1910 
(20.6)  was  less  than  in  1900  (23.1).  In  the  United 
States  as  a whole,  the  percentage  of  tenants  in- 
creased from  35.3  in  1900  to  37.0  in  1910.  Of 
absentee  landlordism,  there  is  not  a great  deal  in 
most  of  the  localities  in  which  Japanese  are  engaged 
in  farming.  Most  of  the  landowners  are  living 
with  their  families  on  the  farms  leased  in  part  or 
in  their  entirety  to  Japanese.  In  no  case  has  there 
been  an  exodus  before  the  Japanese.  The  most 
important  effect  on  the  number  of  white  persons 
is  found  in  the  fact  that  smaller  numbers  come 
to  these  communities  to  lease  or  to  purchase  land. 
Some  do  come,  they  are  found  in  every  community, 
but  there  is  a widespread  feeling  that  they  are 
fewer  in  number  than  would  come,  were  it  not  for 
the  presence  of  an  Asiatic  population  and  the 
higher  land  values  which  obtain.  A few  specific 
instances  to  support  such  a belief  have  come  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  writer.  Moreover,  in  some 
localities  little  has  been  done  to  subdivide  large 
tracts  and  to  attract  white  families  who  might 
purchase,  establish  homes,  and  do  their  own  work, 
so  that  the  number  of  white  persons  is  smaller 
than  it  otherwise  would  be  and  the  tendency  toward 
the  development  of  a small  landowning  class  has 
been  retarded.  The  managers  of  a few  large  tracts 

147 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

of  land  have  told  the  writer  that  it  was  better  to 
hold  their  property  and  have  the  land  cultivated 
by  “ camps  ” of  tenants  than  to  subdivide  it  and 
sell  it  as  small  farms. 

Japanese  Good  Tenants.  — The  complaint  that 
the  Japanese  “ skin  ” the  land  and  ruin  the  or- 
chards is  frequently  heard.  Most  of  the  Japanese 
are  tenants,  and  tenant  farming  is  likely  to  have 
such  results.  No  case  can  be  made  against  the 
Japanese  as  against  other  tenants,  however.  On 
the  contrary,  while  one  finds  rather  numerous 
instances  in  which  the  landowners  have  been  dis- 
satisfied with  the  Japanese  tenants  they  have  had, 
the  general  opinion  is  that  the  Japanese  are  good 
farmers  and  give  rather  more  than  less  interest 
than  is  usual  among  tenants  to  the  care  and  con- 
servation of  the  properties  leased  by  them.  At 
Sacramento  recently  the  president  of  one  large 
fruit-shipping  firm  and  the  treasurer  of  another 
said  that  the  Japanese  were  among  the  most 
careful  and  painstaking  orchardists.  At  Fresno, 
a prominent  Armenian  told  me  that  he  would 
rather  lease  his  vineyards  to  Japanese  than  to 
farmers  of  his  own  race  because  they  took  better 
care  of  them.  The  charge  that  the  Japanese 
ruin  the  farms  is  a charge,  which,  like  many  others, 
one  hears  less  of  the  closer  he  gets  to  the  place 
where  the  damage  is  presumed  to  have  taken 
place.  On  the  whole  the  Japanese  are  regarded 
as  good  farmers  and  good  tenants. 

The  Observance  of  Contracts.  — Much  has  been 
heard  to  the  effect  that  the  Japanese  are  not  honest 

148 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 


in  contractual  relations.  This  charge  will  be  dis- 
cussed in  its  general  aspects  later  in  this  report. 
So  far  as  it  relates  to  the  business  relations  of  the 
farmers,  there  has  been  not  a little  complaint. 
Much  of  it,  however,  appears  to  have  been  due  to 
their  inability  to  understand  all  the  details  of  a 
contract  they  could  not  read.  In  recent  years 
more  care  has  been  taken  to  understand  all  of  the 
conditions  of  the  contract  entered  into  and  the 
charges  of  breach  of  contract  have  become  much 
fewer.  Another  source  of  misunderstanding  has 
been  that  some  of  the  Japanese  who  think  more 
in  personal  terms  and  less  in  terms  of  contract 
than  Americans,  have  sought  to  secure  a change 
in  their  leases  when  they  proved  to  be  bad  bar- 
gains and  have  occasionally  left  their  holdings  in 
order  to  avoid  loss.  A third  fact  is  that  formerly 
some  undesirable  Japanese  secured  leases.  These, 
however,  have  gradually  fallen  out  of  the  class  of 
tenants  so  that  most  of  those  who  remain  are  effi- 
cient and  desirable  farmers.  The  changes  noted 
explain  the  statement  of  a prominent  fruit  shipper 
to  the  effect  that  ten  years  ago  forty  of  each  fifty 
tenants  were  dishonest,  but  that  now  the  forty  are 
honest  and  entirely  trustworthy. 

Occasional  Overproduction.  — Here  and  there  it 
is  asserted  that  the  Japanese  have  “ spoiled  the 
market.”  The  truth  seems  to  be  that  many  of  the 
Japanese  are  inclined  to  ” put  all  their  eggs  in  one 
basket.”  If  strawberries,  or  asparagus,  or  canta- 
loupes bring  good  prices  and  their  production  yields 
a good  profit,  the  acreage  is  greatly  increased  and 

149 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  prices  fall.  Many  Japanese  farmers  have  not 
made  money  because  of  this  and  it  appears  to  be 
true  that  the  production  of  strawberries  and  of 
vegetables  in  some  cases  has  been  unduly  expanded 
with  the  result  that  producers  complain  of  low 
prices. 

The  Kind  of  Labor  Hired.  — Another  assertion 
is  that  the  Japanese  farmers  employ  only  their 
own  countrymen  and  that  this  effects  a further 
displacement  of  white  farm  laborers.  Though 
there  are  exceptions,  such  as  in  the  case  of  Mr. 
Shima,  who  always  employed  all  races  in  the  pro- 
duction of  potatoes  on  an  enormous  scale,  and  in 
the  harvesting  of  fruit,  the  charge  was  substantially 
true  until  Japanese  labor  became  scarce  and  dear. 
The  Immigration  Commission  reported  “ That  the 
leasing  of  land  to  Japanese,  as  to  Chinese  and 
Italians,  has  resulted  in  a displacement  of  laborers 
of  other  races  because,  on  account  of  the  dis- 
inclination of  white  persons  to  work  for  them  or 
their  own  favoritism,  they  employ  persons  of  their 
own  race  almost  exclusively.”  ^ No  doubt  the 
fact  of  personal  acquaintance  and  advantage  of  a 
common  language  had  much  to  do  with  this  policy. 
But,  whatever  the  reasons,  the  facts  were  as  stated. 
The  California  Labor  Commissioner  reported  that 
96  per  cent  of  the  employees  on  the  farms  investi- 
gated were  Japanese.  More  recently,  however, 
with  the  increase  in  wages  commanded  by  Japa- 
nese and  the  increasing  scarcity  of  laborers  of  that 
race,  the  farmers  are  employing  “ white  ” persons, 
1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Volxome  i,  p.  672. 

150 


JAPANESE  FARMING  IN  CALIFORNIA 

Mexicans,  and  East  Indians  in  larger  and  larger 
numbers. 

Two  other  points,  namely,  the  standard  of  living 
and  the  work  of  women  in  the  fields,  may  be  passed 
over  because  they  are  dwelt  upon  in  the  next 
chapter  of  this  report. 


CHAPTER  VII 


JAPANESE  FARMING:  SOME  COMMUNITY 
OBSERVATIONS 

Florin.  — A more  detailed  discussion  of  Japanese 
work  and  farming  as  observed  in  a few  communities 
will  add  something  to  the  general  summary  state- 
ment of  the  two  chapters  immediately  preceding. 
Only  four  of  those  with  which  the  writer  had  more 
than  a passing  acquaintance,  gained  five  years  ago, 
and  which  were  visited  again  this  last  summer, 
will  be  passed  under  review.  And,  first  of  all. 
Florin,  a community  which  has  been  written  of 
until  it  has  become  famous  and  one  hesitates  to 
say  anything  more  about  it.  It  is,  however,  the 
best  locality  in  the  United  States  for  the  study  of 
the  problem  connected  with  Japanese  agricultural 
life.  This  fact  and  the  fact  that  much  that  is 
untrue  has  been  said  of  it,  afford  my  apology  for 
presenting  the  following  details.^ 

The  Japanese  Population  and  Farms.  — The 
Japanese  are  a more  conspicuous  element  of  the 
population  and  in  farming  in  the  Florin  district 
than  in  any  other  important  community  in  Cali-  . 
fornia.  They  cultivate  on  their  own  account 

1 The  writer  made  a report  on  Japanese  Tenant  and  Landowning 
Farmers  of  the  Florin  District  to  the  Immigration  Commission 
(see  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  401-412).  Free  use  is  made  of  it  in  this 
chapter. 


152 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


more  than  one  third  of  the  land,  and  do  a large 
share  of  the  work  on  many  of  the  other  ranches. 
The  total  number  of  Japanese  residing  there 
throughout  the  year  is  between  eight  and  nine 
hundred,  and  to  those  several  hundred  are  added 
during  the  busiest  seasons  when  strawberries  and 
grapes  are  picked,  packed,  and  shipped.  In  the 
settled  population  there  are  some  255  farmers, 
some  159  married  women  (most  of  them  the  wives 
of  farmers),  and  some  150  children  under  14  years 
of  age.  The  business  men,  laborers  in  the  basket 
factory,  and  farm  hands  residing  there  regularly, 
making  allowance  for  some  duplication,  add  about 

300- 

The  “ Florin  District.”  — Florin  is  a small  village 
and  shipping  station,  nine  or  ten  miles  south  and 
east  of  Sacramento.  The  town  stretches  along  a 
main  highway  for  perhaps  a third  of  a mile  on 
either  side  of  the  railroad  track.  Roughly  speak- 
ing the  “ Florin  District  ” embraces  some  twenty 
square  miles  and,  therefore,  12,000  or  13,000  acres, 
most  of  which  is  tillable.  Grapes  and  strawberries 
are  the  chief  crops,  but  wheat  and  “ hay  lands  ” 
combined  give  a large  acreage.  Florin  is  an  agri- 
cultural town,  its  white  grocer,  butcher,  and  black- 
smith, its  two  Japanese  grocers,  and  several  small 
shopkeepers  supplying  the  needs  of  the  farmers  and 
their  hands.  The  basket  factory  there  located 
provides  the  baskets  and  crates  necessary  for 
shipping  strawberries  and  grapes. 

Twenty-five  Years  Ago.  — The  Florin  of  to-day 
differs  greatly  in  population  and  agricultural  in- 

153 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

dustries  from  the  Florin  of  twenty-five  years  ago. 
Though  a couple  of  hundred  acres  were  given  to 
the  cultivation  of  strawberries  and  a considerable 
amount  of  grapes  were  grown  at  that  time,  wheat 
and  hay  were  the  main  crops,  and  the  farms,  all 
of  them  owned  by  white  families  and  few  of  them 
farmed  by  tenants,  were  large.  The  continuous 
use  of  the  thin,  hard  soil  for  these  crops  gradually 
impoverished  it,  however,  so  that  it  was  necessary 
to  find  crops,  such  as  strawberries  and  grapes,  for 
which  it  was  better  adapted.  The  older  order 
has  largely  passed  away,  and  the  new  one  has  been 
shaped  pretty  much  by  the  Japanese. 

The  Japanese  and  a New  Florin. — The  commer- 
cial growing  of  grapes  began  nearly  thirty-five  years 
ago,  and  by  1890  it  had  made  considerable  progress. 
The  growing  of  strawberries  on  a very  limited  scale 
came  later.  Much  of  the  handwork  in  the  vine- 
yards in  the  early  days  was  done  by  the  Chinese,  a 
comparatively  small  number  of  whom  were  settled 
in  the  community.  The  first  Japanese  found 
employment  there  just  twenty  years  ago;  by  1900 
they  did  practically  all  of  the  work  in  the  straw- 
berry patches  and  a good  share  of  that  in  the  vine- 
yards. The  Chinese  soon  disappeared.  For  fifteen 
years,  then,  the  Japanese  have  been  the  most  im- 
portant element  in  the  hired  labor  supply.  During 
that  time  field  after  field  has  been  leveled,  ditched, 
and  pumping  machinery  installed  for  irrigation, 
and  the  land  devoted  to  strawberries  for  a few  years 
while  vines  were  developing,  and  then  turned  into  a 
vineyard  by  their  labor.  To-day  strawberry  patches 

154 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


of  from  2 to  10  acres  and  vineyards  of  much  larger 
size  arrest  the  visitor’s  attention.  The  hay,  wheat, 
and  waste  land,  though  still  extensive,  makes  little 
impression  on  his  mind.  During  that  time,  also, 
wages  paid  Japanese  for  temporary  work  advanced 
from  $i  per  day  — the  rate  at  which  the  Chinese 
had  been  paid  — to  $1.50  to  $1.75  or  $1.80  in  1909, 
and  to  $2  to  $2.50  in  1914.  The  basket  factory 
was  established  ten  years  ago.  At  first  most  of 
the  employees  were  white  women  and  girls  of  the 
community.  They  were  found  to  be  unsatisfactory 
in  certain  respects  and  were  rapidly  displaced  by 
Japanese,  who  by  1909  filled  practically  all  of  the 
positions.  It  is  said  that  the  white  women  were 
difficult  to  manage,  could  not  be  depended  upon  to 
report  for  work  regularly,  and,  though  paid  by  the 
piece  (for  making  grape  and  strawberry  baskets), 
did  not  wish  to  work  more  than  ten  hours  per  day, 
or  work  overtime,  or  on  Sundays,  as  it  was  thought 
the  interests  of  the  business  required.  In  all  of 
these  matters  the  Japanese  were  more  acceptable 
to  their  employers,  who  are  white  men  prominently 
connected  with  shipping  firms  in  Sacramento. 
Paid  by  the  piece,  they  formerly  worked  twelve 
to  fourteen  hours  per  day,  and  on  Sundays,  when 
the  demand  was  such  as  to  make  long  hours  profit- 
able.^ At  present  all  of  the  employees,  except  a 
representative  of  the  non-resident  manager,  are 
Japanese.  Most  of  the  thirty-five  or  so  are  women, 
and  with  few  exceptions  they  are  married.  A few 
young  children  are  brought  to  the  factory,  where 
1 See  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  405-406. 

155 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  youngest  are  kept  in  cribs  installed  for  this 
purpose.  Of  course  the  hours  have  been  brought 
under  control  by  the  adoption  of  the  eight-hour 
law  for  women  workers. 

The  Leasing  and  Purchasing  of  Land.  — It  was 

four  or  five  years  after  the  first  Japanese  came  to 
Florin  that  they  began  to  lease  land  and  farm  it  on 
their  own  account.  According  to  the  older  Jap- 
anese now  living  in  the  community,  it  was  in  1898 
that  four  families  settled  there  and  began  to  grow 
strawberries  for  a share  of  the  crop.  These  tenants 
were  extraordinarily  successful,  for  the  prices  of 
strawberries  were  high  and  the  market  in  Sac- 
ramento was  at  hand  and  those  in  San  Francisco 
and  other  “ Bay  Cities  ” were  easily  reached  by 
rail.  These  successful  ventures  combined  with 
other  things  to  induce  an  increasing  number  of 
Japanese,  some  of  whom  had  been  employed  in 
the  locality,  to  become  tenant  farmers.  In  1901, 
the  Japanese  began  to  purchase  farms.  Leasing 
and  purchasing  of  lands  has  continued  more  or 
less  rapidly  according  to  the  fluctuations  in  the 
prices  of  strawberries,  until  something  more  than  a 
third  of  the  land  in  the  district  is  cultivated  by 
them.  Long  since,  the  few  white  growers  of 
strawberries,  who  once  had  a couple  of  hundred 
acres  all  told,  it  is  said,  withdrew  from  the  industry, 
so  that  it  is  now  controlled  by  the  Japanese.  The 
growing  of  grapes  is  extensively  engaged  in  by  white 
farmers  whose  vineyards  have  been  developed 
chiefly  by  Japanese  tenants  growing  strawberries, 
but  the  Japanese  farmers  also  have  devoted  an 

156 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


increasing  acreage  to  the  production  of  grapes. 
It  has  been  estimated  that  the  value  of  all  crops 
grown  by  Japanese  farmers  about  Florin  in  1912 
was  $557,949.  In  this  total,  grapes  accounted 
for  $276,904,  strawberries  for  $256,720,  chickens 
for  $10,500,  hay  $4,200,  and  tomatoes  $875.^ 
The  acreage  farmed  by  Japanese  and  the  number 
of  their  holdings  are  shown  for  1908,  1912,  and 
1914,  in  the  following  table : ^ 


"1908 

1912 

1914 

Number  of  holdings 

71 

189 

205 

Acres  leased 

1,678 

2,768 

2,670 

Acres  owned 

697 

1,065 

1,849 

Total  acreage  

2,375 

3,833 

4,239 

In  one  part  of  Florin,  a couple  of  years  ago, 
there  were  154  farms  owned  and  cultivated  by 
white  farmers,  31  owned  and  cultivated  by  Jap- 
anese farmers,  and  63  owned  by  white  farmers, 
most  of  whom  lived  on  their  holdings,  and  farmed 
by  Japanese  tenants.®  The  proportion  of  Japanese 

1 Kaizo  Naka  (Master’s  Thesis,  University  of  California,  1913), 
Social  and  Economic  Conditions  among  Japanese  Farmers  in  Cali- 
fornia, p.  43. 

* The  figures  for  1914  are  not  entirely  comparable  with  those  for 
the  other  years,  for  the  land  leased  by  Japanese  from  Japanese  owners 
has  been  deducted  in  arriving  at  the  total  acreage.  The  figures  for 
1908  are  from  the  Japanese- American  Yearbook,  those  for  1912 
from  Mr.  Naka’s  thesis,  while  those  for  1914  are  based  upon  a com- 
plete list  of  holdings  furnished  by  Mr.  Zuzuki,  Secretary  of  the 
Japanese  Association.  Mr.  Naka  found  55  farms  owned  in  1912. 
The  number  at  present  is  79. 

® Letter  by  Mr.  Buckner  to  editor  of  Collier’s  Weekly,  June  19, 

1913. 

157 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

holdings  in  this  district  was  perhaps  above  the 
average.  Some  of  their  holdings  are  of  entire 
farms,  while  others  are  small  tracts  into  which 
farms  have  been  subdivided  temporarily  or  per- 
manently for  the  purpose  of  cultivation  or  sale. 
It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  an  increase  in  the 
number  of  Japanese  farms,  such  as  is  shown  in 
the  table  presented  above,  has  not  effected  a cor- 
responding decrease  in  the  number  of  farms  held 
by  other  races. ^ 

The  Country.  — Thus  as  one  traverses  the  high- 
ways of  the  Florin  district  he  may  pass  a few  ad- 
joining farms  of  the  ordinary  size  owned  or  leased 
by  Japanese  farmers.  Where  the  land  is  leased, 
the  chances  are  that  the  owner  lives  with  his  family 
in  the  residence  and  that  the  Japanese  tenant  — 
with  his  family  — occupies  a " boxed-up  ” unceiled 
“ shack  ” of  two,  three,  or  four  rooms  located  at 
some  distance  from  the  road,  or  the  Chinese  bunk 

1 Mr.  Naka,  in  his  thesis  cited  above,  gives  (p.  42)  the  following 
details  relating  to  the  size  of  Japanese  holdings  in  this  district.  He 
made  a statistical  study  of  the  Japanese  farming  as  it  obtained  in 
1912  — the  year  to  which  these  figures  relate. 


Size  of  Farms 

Number  of  Farms 

Percentage 

5 to  10  acres  

18 

14.06 

10  to  15  acres 

30 

2344 

15  to  20  acres 

16 

12.50 

20  to  30  acres 

19 

14.90 

30  to  50  acres 

36 

28.12 

50  to  100  acres 

8 

6. 

Over  100  acres 

I 

.8 

158 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


house  built  years  ago  for  the  Asiatic  hired  help. 
Only  in  a minority  of  cases  are  the  Japanese  ten- 
ants occupying  the  farm  residence  and  cultivating 
the  land  leased.  At  other  points  in  his  journey 
the  observer  will  see  only  here  and  there  farms 
which  have  come  into  the  hands  of  the  Asiatics. 
Occasionally  he  will  come  upon  a large  farm  which 
has  been  subdivided  to  be  leased  or  sold  to  Jap- 
anese. In  a few  of  these  cases  a number  of  com- 
paratively new  houses  of  inferior  type  have  been 
built  in  a group  to  serve  the  needs  of  the  several 
families  and  a colony  has  resulted.  In  other  cases 
the  houses  stand  upon  five-,  ten-,  or  twenty-acre 
tracts  which  have  been  set  off  for  lease  or  sale,  a 
number  of  comparatively  new  houses  occupied  by 
Japanese  thus  occurring  close  together. 

The  Town.  — And  upon  his  return  to  the  town 
of  Florin,  the  visitor  finds  a store,  a blacksmith 
shop,  a butcher  shop,  and  a new  hotel  conducted 
by  white  men,  a couple  of  stores,  a barber  shop, 
and  a few  other  smaller  business  places,  conducted 
by  Japanese.  Along  the  main  highway  are  several 
residences  of  the  usual  village  type,  and  the  Metho- 
dist church  and  the  public  school  building.  By  the 
railroad  track  is  the  basket  factory.  Across  the  track 
and  back  some  distance  from  the  main  highway,  is 
a row  of  poor  “ shacks  ” where  some  of  the  factory 
hands  and  other  Japanese  laborers  find  shelter. 

The  Progress  of  the  Japanese  Explained.  — The 
progress  made  by  the  Japanese  as  farmers,  so 
noticeable  in  this  district,  is  explained  by  their 
ability  and  ambition  to  get  on  and  the  convenience 

159 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

and  economic  advantage  to  the  landowners  in 
leasing  or  selling  to  them. 

Farmer’s  Profits;  Position;  a Home.  — Though 
prices  have  fluctuated  greatly  and  on  the  whole  the 
growers  of  strawberries  have  not  made  much  profit, 
the  large  profits  made  now  and  then  have  appealed 
strongly  to  the  Japanese.  As  important  as  this 
has  been  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  are  not  con- 
tent, as  are  the  Chinese,  to  remain  in  the  inferior 
position  of  wage  earners.  And  most  important 
of  all,  they  have  wished  to  settle  down  with  their 
families.  The  way  has  been  made  comparatively 
easy  by  the  convenient  terms  for  paying  rent  or 
purchase  price  and  by  the  liberal  credit  extended 
and  advances  made  to  them.  There  has  been 
here,  as  elsewhere,  a considerable  element  of  truth 
in  the  statement  that  they  have  farmed  with  other 
people’s  capital.  Most  have  begun  as  share  ten- 
ants. Later  on  when  cash  rent  has  been  paid  for 
land  to  be  devoted  to  growing  strawberries,  it  Jias 
been  not  unusual  to  divide  the  total  to  be  paid 
during  the  period  of  years,  so  that  most  of  it  be- 
came due  in  the  seasons  of  greatest  productivity. 
Comparatively  small  amounts  have  served  as  first 
payments  on  the  purchase  price  of  land.  The 
Immigration  Commission  found  that  in  one  case 
of  twelve  investigated  no  cash  payment  was  re- 
quired at  the  time  of  purchase,  while  in  the  other 
eleven  the  total  payment  amounted  to  only  17.26 
per  cent  of  the  consideration  involved.^  Beginning 
thus,  the  farms  were  usually  paid  for  as  the  crops 
‘ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  p.  407. 

160 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


were  disposed  of,  or,  in  some  cases,  they  reverted 
to  the  original  owner  when  the  purchaser  became 
bankrupt.  Tenants  have  received  liberal  advances 
from  owners,  while  practically  all  of  the  growers 
have  received  credit  at  the  stores  and  received  the 
usual  liberal  advances  from  the  companies  shipping 
the  crops.  Thus  credit  in  various  forms  has  made 
a beginning  easy. 

The  Interest  of  the  Landlord.  — On  the  other 
hand  the  leasing  of  their  farms  has  appealed  strongly 
to  the  landowners  of  the  community.  Much  labor 
is  involved  in  growing  intensive  crops,  and  leasing 
interests  the  laborer  in  the  crop  and  gives  a nucleus 
for  the  needed  labor  supply.  In  some  instances 
farmers  have  said  that  they  leased  their  land  when 
it  was  sought  lest  they  should  be  unable  to  secure 
the  Japanese  labor  which  had  become  almost  neces- 
sary. Moreover,  leasing  for  the  growing  of  straw- 
berries has  been  attractive  to  farmers  who  wished 
to  develop  “ hay  land  ” into  vineyards.  The 
tenant  has  leveled  the  ground,  irrigated  it,  and 
set  and  cared  for  the  vines  while  growing  berries. 
And  while  this  was  being  done,  the  land  brought 
a rental  considerably  higher  than  it  would  yield 
if  used  for  the  production  of  hay  or  wheat.  And, 
finally,  the  Japanese  have  been  willing  to  pay  rel- 
atively high  rents.  As  the  purchasers  of  land  also 
they  have  been  willing  to  pay  relatively  high  prices. 
By  frugal  living,  long  hours,  and  great  industry 
they  then  have  sought  to  make  their  profit. 

Rents  and  Land  Values.  — All  parties  agree  that 
the  Japanese  have  paid  the  highest  rents  and  the 
M i6l 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

highest  prices  for  land.  Its  value  has  almost,  if 
not  quite,  doubled  during  the  last  ten  years,  and  the 
increase  in  rents  has  supported  this  advance.  The 
assertion  frequently  made  that  the  presence  of  the 
Japanese  has  reduced  the  selling  price  of  land  in 
the  community  is  untrue.  Their  demand  has  been 
too  strong  for  that  and  numerous  cases  can  be  cited 
to  support  the  contrary.  The  biggest,  and  indeed 
the  only  important,  factor  in  causing  the  advance 
has  been  the  competition  of  the  Japanese  for  farms. 
Their  standards  of  living  and,  more  important, 
their  industry  and  their  efficiency  as  growers  of 
strawberries  and  grapes  have  enabled  them  to  be 
the  most  successful  competitors  for  possession  of 
the  soil. 

The  White  Population.  — It  Is  frequently  said 
that  white  families  have  left  the  community  because 
of  the  presence  of  the  Japanese  and  that  the  white 
population  has  diminished  in  the  last  ten  years. 
Some  white  families  have  moved  away  — whether 
because  of  the  presence  and  activities  of  the  Japa- 
nese, or  because  of  the  limited  opportunities  offered 
by  a small  place  in  the  shadow  of  a rapidly  growing 
city,  it  is  hard  to  say.  Some  of  the  daughters  have 
married  and  live  elsewhere,  some  of  the  sons  have 
sought  better  opportunities  In  Sacramento  and  San 
Francisco,  and  a few  families  in  this  way  have  sim- 
ply “ died  out.”  No  doubt  the  possibility  of  leasing 
their  land  on  good  terms  has  placed  a premium  on 
absentee  landlordism  while  the  liberal  prices  offered 
for  land  have  placed  a premium  on  selling  out  and  re- 
tiring to  some  other  place.  But  a trip  through  the 

162 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


country  reveals  the  fact  that  white  families,  and  not 
a few  of  them,  have  in  recent  years  bought  or 
leased  farms  and  settled  in  the  community.  San 
Joaquin  township  in  1910  had  a total  population  of 
2,236,  as  against  1,289  in  1900  and  1,383  in  1890. 
Making  due  allowance  for  the  increasing  number 
of  Asiatics,  the  white  population  must  have  more 
than  held  its  own  between  1900  and  1910  when  the 
influx  of  Japanese  was  greatest. 

Japanese  good  Farmers.  — An  examination  of 
the  situation  shows  not  only  that  the  Japanese  have 
played  the  largest  part  in  converting  Florin  into  a 
strawberry-  and  grape-growing  center,  but  also  that 
they  are  good  farmers.  Their  farms  almost  without 
exception  bear  witness  to  the  fact  that  they  are  well 
versed  in  the  arts  of  agriculture  and  are  tireless  in 
their  industry.  Their  vineyards  are  usually  better 
than  those  of  their  neighbors.  Farms  recently 
acquired  by  them  are  producing  something,  while 
some  of  the  small  tracts  purchased  or  leased  by 
white  farmers  after  two  or  three  years  bear  evidence 
of  little  or  no  improvement  except  the  newly  con- 
structed typical  American  cottage. 

Japanese  Housing.  — The  statement  has  been 
made  that  the  housing  of  the  Japanese  is  on  the 
whole  good  and  that  from  the  road  you  cannot 
tell  whether  a residence  is  occupied  by  a Japanese 
or  a white  family,  but  this  is  misleading.  Here  and 
there  a good  farm  house  has  been  purchased  with 
the  land  and  is  occupied  by  the  Japanese  owner. 
Here  and  there  the  white  family  has  moved  away 
and  the  tenant  occupies  the  “ white  house.”  Here 

163 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

and  there,  indeed,  in  a large  percentage  of  the  cases, 
Japanese  who  have  purchased  tracts  have  erected 
modern  cottages  comparing  not  unfavorably  with 
those  erected  by  their  white  neighbors.  More 
frequently,  however,  the  rough  “ boarded-up,” 
unpainted  structures  are  poor  enough,  though  they 
are  generally  better  than  those  erected  by  the  land- 
owners  for  their  Asiatic  tenants.  It  is  perhaps  true 
that  as  they  become  able  these  poor  structures  are 
replaced  by  good  houses.  It  ^5  true  that  ordinarily 
the  American  family  requires  a comfortable  house 
to  begin  with,  and  that  in  the  majority  of  cases  the 
Japanese  do  not.  Most  of  the  Japanese  families 
are  of  course  living  in  homes  built  for  them  as  ten- 
ants or  laborers  and  these  are  usually  no  better 
than  those  erected  elsewhere  to  serve  the  same  pur- 
pose. With  land  ownership  better  houses  are  built, 
but  on  the  whole,  as  Mr.  Naka  observes,  the  Japa- 
nese of  the  Florin  district  are  poorly  housed.  In 
this  respect  their  standard  of  living  has  been  low  or 
their  thrift  has  been  unusual  as  tested  by  American 
standards. 

Other  Standards.  — Much  the  same  might  be 
said  of  the  furnishings  seen  in  the  dozen  houses 
inspected.  Except  for  the  long  raised  bunk  pro- 
vided in  some  cases  for  their  countrymen  employed 
as  laborers,  and  possibly  the  open  fire  doing  service 
for  the  cooking,  the  furnishings  are  American  and  of 
fair  quality.  In  some  cases  they  compare  very 
favorably  with  those  of  American  neighbors,  but 
usually  they  are  meager.  In  perhaps  one  case  in 
four,  the  homes  are  clean  and  well  cared  for  but  in 

164 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


the  Others  the  housekeeping  is  more  or  less  neg- 
lected for  work  in  the  fields,  for  nearly  all  of  the 
women  are  working  regularly  in  the  strawberry 
patches  or  vineyards.  In  the  case  of  the  Japanese, 
it  is  still  a “ work-a-day  life  ” with  long  hours  and 
usually  more  than  a six-day  week.  They  are  paying 
for  the  land  or  “ making  ” the  rent,  they  work 
industriously  and  intelligently,  but  relatively  few 
of  them  think  and  act  as  yet  in  terms  of  the  Amer- 
ican standard  so  far  as  the  things  thus  far  mentioned 
are  concerned. 

But  in  the  matter  of  dress  and  food  the  Japanese 
standard  is  not  low.  If  anything,  it  is  extravagant. 
They  wear  good  American  clothing  and  there  is 
evidence  of  a lack  of  economy  in  the  purchase  of 
supplies.  There  is  evidence  also  of  much  hospi- 
tality. In  some  places  it  is  found  in  sake  kegs  or 
empty  beer  bottles.  In  the  making  of  presents  to 
one  another  and  their  white  friends,  they  are  gen- 
erous to  a fault.  Many  expensive  things  are 
bought  for  the  children  who  are  now  found  in  al- 
most all  of  the  families. 

Business  Relations.  — Most  of  the  dealings  of 
the  Japanese  farmers  and  laborers  are  with  the 
Japanese  shops  conducted  in  Florin.  It  is  only 
natural  that  it  should  be  so  because  of  racial  sym- 
pathies, ease  of  doing  business  in  their  own  lan- 
guage, the  possibility  of  purchasing  Japanese  arti- 
cles which  enter  into  their  diet  to  a considerable 
extent,  and  because  the  best  store  is  now  conducted 
by  a merchant  of  this  race.  The  one  white  grocery 
is  inferior  in  stock  of  goods,  if  not  in  management, 

165 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

to  the  largest  Japanese  store.  White  families  deal 
there  to  a considerable  extent  and  to  meet  their 
needs  an  American  clerk  is  employed.  Yet  the 
bitterly  anti-Japanese  grocer  (Mr.  Reese)  states 
that  he  gets  a share  of  the  Japanese  trade.  While 
it  has  been  impossible  to  secure  needed  details,  it 
is  undoubtedly  true  that  Florin  is  not  as  good  as  it 
once  was  for  white  storekeepers  and  business  men. 
The  situation,  to  a certain  extent,  has  grown  away 
from  them. 

Social  Considerations.  — As  Miss  Brown  has 
said,  “ The  Japanese  are  peaceable,  law-abiding, 
tirelessly  industrious,  home-seeking,  moral,  tem- 
perate, grateful,  and  generous.  They  require  no 
policing,  there  are  no  disturbances  ; no  woman  has 
ever  been  molested.”  ^ In  business  matters  the 
relations  between  the  races  are  satisfactory  and 
there  is  little  complaint  of  the  non-observance  of 
contracts  and  the  like.  Of  neighborly  visiting  be- 
tween white  and  Japanese  families,  there  is  some 
but  not  much.  Most  of  the  Japanese  women  seen 
could  understand  little  of  the  English  required  in 
ordinary  conversation  and  most  whites  are  not 
inclined  to  grant  the  Japanese  full  social  standing. 
Perhaps  they  have  risen  from  an  inferior  economic 
rank  too  recently  for  that.  The  average  white  man 
is  inclined  to  react  unfavorably  when  an  Asiatic 
race  rises  from  an  inferior  economic  position. 

Dr.  Gulick’s  statement  that  “ a large  number  of 
small  farmers  have  no  direct  or  personal  relations 
with  the  Japanese,  neither  employing  their  labor 
1 The  Japanese  in  Florin,  California,  pp.  4-5. 

166 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


nor  leasing  to  them  nor  regarding  or  treating  them 
as  neighbors  ” is  trued  The  accuracy  of  his  ob- 
servation that  Florin  farmers  do  not  want  restric- 
tive legislation  against  the  Japanese  is  at  least 
questionable. 

Some  Dissatisfaction  among  White  Residents.  — 
When  the  alien  land  bill  was  under  consideration 
in  the  state  legislature  in  the  spring  of  1913,  much 
was  said  concerning  the  situation  about  Florin  and 
the  attitude  of  the  citizens  of  that  community. 
The  Japanese  found  a number  of  spokesmen  in 
prominent  men  and  women  of  the  town  and  country. 
On  the  other  hand,  in  order  that  Mr.  Bradford’s 
bill  might  be  reported  out  of  the  committee  where 
it  rested,  a petition  praying  that  legislation  should 
be  enacted  forbidding  the  purchase  of  land  by  Jap- 
anese was  circulated  at  Florin.  At  the  instance  of 
Mr.  Reese,  it  was  “ taken  up  and  down  the  road  ” 
and  something  more  than  seventy  signatures  were 
secured.  It  was  not  presented  to  a few  known  to 
be  opposed  to  such  legislation,  and  two  others,  I 
am  told,  refused  to  sign  it.  This  petition  was  se- 
cured from  Mr.  Bradford,  and  Miss  Brown  (pro- 
Japanese)  was  asked  to  check  it  so  as  to  throw  light 
on  the  character  of  the  signers.  A few  were  found 
to  be  non-residents,  some  of  the  residents  were  not 
farmers,  some  of  the  farmers  had  not  leased  land  to 
Japanese.  A considerable  number  were  representa- 
tive farmers  who  had  and  were  at  the  time  leasing 
to  Japanese.  With  due  allowance  for  the  fact  that 
it  is  an  easy  matter  to  secure  signatures  to  almost 
^ The  American  Japanese  Problem,  p.  84. 

167 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

any  petition,  this  petition  and  the  circumstances 
under  which  it  was  circulated  and  presented  must 
be  regarded  as  evidence  of  some,  perhaps  a consid- 
erable, dissatisfaction  with  the  situation  at  Florin 
among  those  resident  there. 

Japanese  Children  in  the  Public  Schools.  — There 
are  now  in  this  community  many  Japanese  children 
under  fourteen  and  a considerable  number  of  young 
men.  Though  the  majority  of  the  children  are  still 
too  young  to  attend  school,  the  number  in  the  pri- 
mary grades  is  almost  as  large  as  that  of  the  white 
pupils.  The  Japanese  children  are  intelligent  and 
well  behaved.  They  and  others  play  together  at 
school  and  elsewhere  without  friction.  The  only 
problem  that  has  developed  has  been  in  the  first 
and  second  grades,  due  to  the  presence  of  Japanese 
children  with  a limited  knowledge  of  English. 
Most  of  the  mothers  know  no  English  and  the  native 
tongue  is  used  at  home  so  that  most  of  the  children 
start  to  school  knowing  only  a few  English  words. 
While  they  are  learning  our  language  the  progress 
made  in  these  beginning  classes  is  retarded.  This 
problem  is  of  some  importance,  but,  happily,  can 
be  easily  solved.  Already  plans  are  under  consid- 
eration looking  to  the  establishment  of  a kinder- 
garten which  these  children  would  attend  for  a 
year  or  two  and  in  which  they  would  learn  English 
before  entering  the  grades.  The  establishment  of 
a school  of  this  character  should  leave  no  problem 
connected  with  the  public  schools. 

The  Problem  of  the  Religious  and  General  Social 
Life  of  the  Community.  — The  problem  connected 

1 68 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


with  the  religious  and  general  social  life  is  more 
difficult  as  seen  by  those  who  are  trying  to  solve  it 
and  who  have  the  greatest  goodwill  for  the  Japanese. 
The  Methodist  church  is  the  center  of  the  better 
social  life  of  the  community  and  is  presided  over 
by  an  unusually  capable  man  in  Mr.  Buckner.  A 
building  has  been  purchased  across  the  street  for 
the  Japanese  mission,  and  this  serves  for  the  Sunday 
school  and  as  a center  for  the  social  life  of  the  small 
number  of  Japanese  who  are  Christians.  But  what 
shall  be  done  to  bring  the  races  belonging  to  the 
same  church  together  in  social  intercourse  as  the 
number  of  young  Japanese  growing  up  increases? 
As  yet  the  races  are  being  held  apart  because  it  is 
thought  any  other  policy  would  cause  the  Americans 
to  withdraw.  There  is  a feeling  that  the  situation 
is  such  that  a unified  social  life  with  the  church  as 
a center  is  impossible.  From  his  sympathetic  point 
of  view  the  pastor  expresses  the  opinion  that  Florin 
has  a social  problem  — and  one  not  entirely  due  to 
the  fact  that  except  for  the  church  and  the  individ- 
ual efforts  of  a very  few  like  Miss  Alice  Brown,  no 
effort  is  being  made  to  make  one  civilization  out  of 
two  diverse  ones  represented  on  the  same  soil. 
With  few  exceptions  the  people  of  Florin  are  op- 
posed to  an  immigration  policy  which,  whatever 
the  economics  of  the  matter  may  be,  develops  a 
situation  such  as  is  found  in  their  community. 

The  character  of  the  houses  in  this  community, 
the  character  of  the  agricultural  work  of  greatest 
importance,  the  contribution  of  the  Japanese  as 
laborers  and  farmers,  and  much  more  of  importance 

169 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

are  shown  by  photographs  for  which  the  writer  is 
greatly  indebted  to  Miss  Brown.  They  may  be 
presented  with  brief  observations. 

The  first  of  these  pictures  gives  a glimpse  of  a 
part  of  Florin  on  a busy  day  when  grapes  are  being 
shipped.  This  year  725  cars  were  shipped  through 
the  four  firms  which  compete  for  the  business. 

The  second  picture  is  of  the  basket  factory  to 
which  reference  has  been  made.  It  is  owned  by 
American  shippers.  The  employees,  with  one  ex- 
ception, are  now  Japanese. 

That  Florin  has  not  ceased  to  be  attractive  to 
white  families  is  shown  by  the  third  picture.  This 
cottage  was  built  a year  ago. 

Some  years  ago  the  one  American  hotel  was  de- 
stroyed by  fire,  but  this  summer  a new  one  was 
built  by  a man  from  Chicago.  It  is  shown  in  the 
fourth  picture. 

Along  with  such  buildings  as  these  are  others 
erected  by  Japanese.  One  of  them  — a store  and 
rooming  house  — is  shown  in  picture  “ 5.” 

White  families  still  come  to  Florin  and  settle 
upon  the  land.  In  picture  “ 6,”  the  house  erected 
by  one  of  them  is  shown.  A living  is  made  by  rais- 
ing chickens  and  ducks  and  selling  milk.  Picture 
“ 7 ” is  of  the  home  and  poor  garden  of  another 
family  of  Americans  who  have  settled  on  the  bare 
land  within  the  last  two  years.  The  house  is  one 
of  the  poorer  kind  to  be  seen. 

The  next  pictures  (“  8 ” and  “ 9 ”)  show  vineyards 
and  strawberry  patches  developed  from  such  land 
as  is  seen  in  picture  “7.” 

170 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 

I.  Florin  when  Grapes  are  being  Shipped. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 


2.  Florin's  Basket  Factory, 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown, 

3.  A New  “American”  Cottage  in  Florin. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 


4.  Florin’s  New  Hotel. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 

5.  A Japanese  Building  built  by  Japanese. 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


Picture  “ lO  ” shows  the  “ squat  ” work  involved 
in  picking  strawberries.  The  picking  is  being  done 
on  a lo-acre  tract  developed  from  pasture  land.  It 
was  purchased  four  years  ago.  Just  before  the  alien 
land  law  went  into  effect,  the  owner  purchased  13 
acres  more. 

A still  better  ranch  is  seen  in  picture  “ ii.”  The 
owner  purchased  20  acres  of  land  filled  with  slough 
holes.  He  paid  $70  per  acre  for  it  and  spent  $40 
an  acre  in  leveling  it. 

Pictures  “ 12  ” and  “ 13  ” show  the  same  tract 
of  land  — the  former  at  the  time  it  was  leased  (in 
1913),  the  latter  three  months  later.  The  land 
was  purchased  by  an  Italian  two  years  ago  for  $80 
an  acre.  It  is  now  leased  to  six  Japanese.  One 
has  30  acres,  the  others  10  acres  each.  Any  improve- 
ments made  by  the  tenants  are  to  become  the  prop- 
erty of  the  owner  of  the  land  upon  the  expiration 
of  the  ten-year  lease. 

Picture  “ 14  ” is  of  the  house  and  berry  patch  of 
a Japanese  who  bought  10  acres  of  swampy  land 
4 years  ago,  paying  $75  per  acre  for  it.  The  last 
13-acre  tract  of  the  subdivided  pasture  was  pur- 
chased by  him  a year  ago  for  $65  per  acre. 

Picture  “ 15  ” shows  the  house  and  premises  (the 
flowers  will  be  noted)  of  a Japanese  who  nine  years 
ago  bought  10  acres  at  $44  per  acre.  He  has  a 
wife  and  six  children  — the  largest  Japanese  family 
in  the  community. 

Picture  “ 16  ” shows  a part  of  a ranch  purchased 
six  years  ago.  The  price  was  $82  per  acre.  The 
bare  land  was  leveled,  irrigated,  and  devoted  to  the 

171 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

production  of  strawberries,  while  the  vineyard  was 
being  developed.  When  the  original  tract  was  paid 
for  out  of  the  profits  realized,  twenty  acres  more 
were  purchased. 

The  last  picture  (“  17  ”)  shows  one  of  the  best  cot- 
tages seen  erected  by  a Japanese  owner.  The  forty- 
acre  vineyard  is  not  shown.  Unfortunately  the 
type  of  house  usually  erected  for  or  by  Japanese 
tenants  is  not  included  in  this  collection.  It  is 
the  same,  however,  as  those  shown  below  in  the 
views  from  southern  California. 

The  Vaca  Valley.  — In  many  respects  the  situation 
in  the  Vaca  Valley,  the  “ Newcastle  district,”  and 
other  old  fruit-growing  communities  differs  from  that 
at  Florin.  Though  it  is  not  entirely  typical  of  such 
communities,  the  Vaca  Valley  maybe  next  passed  un- 
der review.^  It  also  has  received  much  attention;and 
has  often  been  misrepresented  in  public  discussion, 
t Japanese  Holdings.  — The  Vaca  Valley  lies  sev- 
eral miles  north  of  Suisun  and  a short  distance  west 
of  Elmira.  It  is  about  eight  miles  long  and  from 
three  to  six  miles  wide.  Some  15,000  acres  are  de- 
voted to  the  growing  of  grapes  and  deciduous  fruits 
of  various  kinds.  Approximately  one  half  of  this 
large  acreage  is  farmed  by  J apanese,  chiefly  tenants. 
In  1913  they  owned  397  and  leased  7,775  acres, 
most  of  their  holdings  in  this  district  being  devoted 
to  fruit  growing.  Incidentally,  however,  they  de- 
vote about  300  acres  to  the  production  of  vegetables. 

1 The  situation  in  the  Vaca  Valley  was  investigated  by  the  writer 
for  the  Immigration  Commission.  See  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  175-198. 

172 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown^ 

7.  A LESS  Well-to-do  White  Neighbor’s  House  and  “Patch.” 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 

6.  The  House  erected  by  a White  Rancher  who  recently 
MOVED  TO  Florin. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 


8.  Where  Japanese  grow  Grapes. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 

9.  Harvesting  the  Strawberry  Crop  — a Picker  of  the 
“Student  Class.” 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


Leasing  and  the  Labor  Situation.  — The  leasing 
of  orchards  and  vineyards  (these  are  much  less 
important  than  the  orchards)  in  the  Vaca  Valley 
is  intimately  connected  with  the  labor  situation 
there.  Most  of  the  leasing  is  closely  related  to  a 
labor  contract  and  there  is  little  of  permanency  in 
it.  The  acreage  leased  by  Japanese  expanded  with 
their  increasing  domination  of  the  labor  supply 
until  some  7,359  acres  were  controlled  in  this  way  in 
1910.  It  has  changed  little  as  other  elements  in 
the  labor  supply  have  become  more  important  in 
more  recent  years.  Many  of  the  tenants  after  a 
few  years  here  have  migrated  elsewhere  — to  Lodi, 
Fresno,  Penryn  — to  find  better  opportunities,  and 
others,  as  a rule,  have  come  forward  to  fill  their 
places. 

Seasonal  Labor  Required.  — The  Vaca  Valley 
is  one  of  many  places  in  California  where  for  cli- 
matic and  other  reasons,  specialization  in  crops  has 
been  extreme  and  the  labor  problem  growing  out 
of  this  specialization  a difficult  one  to  solve.  The 
landowners  and  tenants  with  a limited  amount  of 
regular  help  do  the  necessary  cultivating  of  the  or- 
chards and  vineyards,  but  from  May,  when  the  har- 
vest season  begins,  until  August,  when  it  ends, 
much  additional  help  is  required  to  pick  and  pack 
cherries,  pears,  plums,  and  peaches,  and  to  pick,  cut, 
and  dry  peaches  and  apricots.  On  ranches  investi- 
gated for  the  Immigration  Commission  in  1908,  it 
was  found  that  those  temporarily  employed  — usu- 
ally for  a few  days  or  a few  weeks  at  most  on  the 
given  ranch  — were  as  7.5  to  each  one  regularly 

173 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

employed.  The  settled  population,  old  and  young, 
urban  and  rural,  fruit-growing  and  non-fruit-grow- 
ing, was  about  5,000  at  that  time.  To  these  about 

4.000  were  added  from  other  localities  to  meet  the 
needs  of  the  community  during  the  busiest  part  of 
the  harvest  season. 

Some  Labor  History.  — Fruit  growing  about  Va- 
caville was  built  largely  on  Chinese  labor.  Several 
years  after  the  Exclusion  Act  went  into  effect  about 

1.000  Chinese  still  found  employment  there.  Much 
of  the  work  wasdone  “ under  contract,”  and,  because 
a convenient  and  profitable  arrangement  for  the 
orchardist,  some  of  the  orchards  were  leased  to 
them.  Just  when  the  Japanese  first  came  there  in 
search  of  work  is  in  doubt,  but  their  appearance 
marked  the  effective  beginning  of  their  employment 
as  agricultural  laborers  in  the  United  States.  In 
1889  about  sixty  were  picking  fruit  on  contracts. 
For  seventeen  years  their  numbers  increased. 
Their  presence  hastened  the  reduction  in  the  num- 
ber of  the  Chinese  and  at  times  there  is  reason  to 
believe  they  caused  the  number  of  white  men  seek- 
ing work  to  diminish.  Not  only  did  they  come  in 
comparatively  large  numbers ; they  were  easily 
secured  through  bosses,  were  easily  provided  for, 
and  were  found  to  be  more  satisfactory  than  the 
transient  white  men  seeking  employment,  especially 
after  1900.  Moreover,  to  begin  with  they  were  the 
cheapest  laborers.  Their  contract  prices  were  at 
first  lower  than  those  of  the  Chinese,  and  their 
day  wages  were  lower  than  those  of  white  men. 
This  underbidding  diminished,  however,  as  they 

174 


CouTlesy  of  Miss  Brown. 

lo.  Developed  from  Pasture  Land  by  the  Japanese  Owner. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown, 

II.  Made  by  the  Japanese  Owner. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown, 


12.  As  IT  WAS  WHEN  LEASED  BY  THE  JAPANESE. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 

13.  The  Same  Land  growing  Strawberries  Three  Months 

Later. 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


became  better  established  and  found  opportunities 
for  employment  elsewhere,  until  there  was  little  of 
it  in  1908.  Though  as  regular  hands  they  were  still 
paid  less  than  white  men,  men  of  all  races  were  paid 
about  the  same  wages  during  the  busy  season  — 
the  Hindus,  working  for  twenty-five  cents  per  day 
less,  being  the  exception.  Complaint  was  already 
made  that  Japanese  were  difficult  to  obtain  and  that 
because  of  scarcity  and  their  tendency  to  demand 
all  the  traffic  would  bear,  their  wages  were  too  high. 
Some  1,500  are  said  to  have  come  to  the  orchards 
that  summer.  The  year  1908  also  marks  the  em- 
ployment of  300  Hindus  and  as  many  Spaniards 
and  a larger  number  of  non-resident  white  persons  — 
some  1,500  — to  break  the  so-called  Japanese  labor 
monopoly. 

Position  of  the  Japanese  in  1908.  — On  farms 
operated  by  the  white  owners  in  1908  the  Japanese 
were  chiefly  pickers  of  fruit  and  pruners.  They  had, 
however,  already  begun  to  share  with  white  men 
employment  as  “ regular  hands  ” to  do  “ hand 
work.”  The  cutting  of  fruit  and  the  packing  of 
that  part  of  it  shipped  green  was  done  chiefly  by 
” white  help  ” and  Spaniards,  300  of  whom  in  their 
poverty  had  come  from  San  Francisco.  But  al- 
ready perhaps  more  than  one  half  of  the  fruit 
marketed  was  grown  on  ranches  leased  or  owned 
by  Japanese  and  there  they  were  the  chief  employees. 
In  fact  they  did  nearly  all  of  the  work  except  the 
cultivating  with  teams,  which  was  most  frequently 
done  by  the  white  owner  or  his  ” hired  men,”  and 
the  cutting  of  apricots  and  peaches,  a large  part  of 

175 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

which  fell  to  the  lot  of  white  men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren. 

More  Recent  Changes.  — During  the  last  six 
years  the  Japanese  have  made  such  occupational 
advance  that  they  do  much  work  with  teams  and 
do  packing,  but  their  numbers  have  fallen  off  greatly. 
As  against  the  1,500  who  came  in  1908  and  the  2,000 
who  had  come  somewhat  earlier  for  the  “ rush 
season,”  only  about  400  now  come  for  the  summer 
months.  Even  the  number  residing  there  through- 
out the  year  has  diminished.  Of  course  their  wages 
have  increased  greatly.  As  against  $1.35,  $1.50, 
and,  in  exceptional  cases,  $1.60,  paid  in  1908,  they 
are  now  paid  $2  and  $2.25  per  day  as  pickers 
and  packers  of  fruit.  The  deficiency  of  Japanese 
has  been  made  good  largely  by  the  increasing  num- 
ber of  Spaniards  who  work  for  about  25  cents  per 
day  less.  Winter  wages  have  advanced  to  $1.75 
per  day  — the  usual  rate,  as  against  the  $1.25  and 
$1.35  paid  in  1908.  The  Japanese  farmers  who  em- 
ployed their  countrymen  very  largely  six  years 
ago,  now  employ  others  in  large  numbers. 

Leasing  by  Japanese.  — As  in  the  case  of  the 
Chinese,  much  of  the  picking  and  pruning  done  by 
Japanese  laborers  was  ” under  contract,”  that  is, 
so  much  per  ton  or  so  much  per  tree,  and  as  in  the 
case  of  the  Chinese,  employment  as  laborers  was 
followed  by  the  leasing  of  orchards  and  vineyards. 
The  first  lease,  for  a share  of  the  crop,  dates  from 
1 900.  By  1 906  the  acreage  under  lease  had  increased 
to  between  four  and  five  thousand,  most  of  it  rented 
for  cash.  In  1908,  according  to  data  supplied  for 

176 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 

14.  A Japanese  Farm.  Note  Contrast  presented  by  the 
Land  across  the  Road. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown* 

15.  The  Home  of  the  Largest  Japanese  Family  in  the 
Community. 


Courtesy  oj  Miss  Brown, 

l6.  As  DEVELOPED  FROM  “ RAW  ” LaND  PURCHASED  SiX  YeARS 

Ago. 


Courtesy  of  Miss  Brown. 


i-j.  One  of  the  Best  of  the  Ranch  Houses  built  by 
Japanese  Owners. 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


the  Japanese- American  Yearbook,  3,024  acres  were 
leased  for  cash  and  3,269  for  a share  of  the  crop. 

Reasons  for  Extensive  Leasing  to  Japanese.  — 
The  progress  in  tenant  farming  thus  shown  is  ex- 
plained by  several  facts.  The  Japanese  laborer 
wished  to  rise  from  the  inferior  position  of  wage- 
earner,  he  wished  to  find  employment  in  one  place 
throughout  the  year,  he  wished  to  get  the  full  prod- 
uct of  his  industry,  and  he  undoubtedly  had  an  ex- 
aggerated impression  of  the  profit  to  be  realized 
from  the  crops.  With  the  landowner  it  was  chiefly 
a matter  of  convenience  in  securing  needed  labor 
and  remunerative  rents.  By  leasing  to  a Japanese 
he  had  a “ boss  ” interested  in  securing  the  best 
laborers  in  sufficient  numbers.  Without  a tenant 
he  was  at  an  increasing  disadvantage  in  securing 
Japanese  laborers  as  tenancy  became  more  prevalent. 
Fear  of  a labor  boycott  also  entered  into  the  situa- 
tion to  some  extent,  for  there  were  instances  where 
in  their  eagerness  to  secure  land,  would-be  tenants 
had  said  it  would  be  impossible  to  get  Japanese 
help  were  the  land  not  leased  to  them.  Rentals 
paid  varied  greatly  with  the  kind  and  quality  of 
the  orchard  and  the  division  of  labor  and  expenses 
between  owner  and  tenant,  so  that  the  amount 
of  cash  or  share  rent  paid  may  be  passed  over  with 
the  Immigration  Commission’s  statement : “ It 

is  a matter  of  common  testimony  that  rentals  paid 
give  a better  return  than  the  owners  can  make  by 
working  their  lands,  and  an  unusually  good  income 
on  the  capital  invested.”  ^ When  cash  rent  was  paid, 
1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  p.  191. 

N 177 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

this  arrangement  had  the  further  advantage  of 
eliminating  the  risk  and  uncertainty  connected 
with  fluctuating  prices. 

The  Character  of  the  Tenure.  — An  agreement 
was  accordingly  entered  into  between  owners  and 
tenants  which  enabled  the  Japanese  laborer  to  be- 
come a farmer  and  which  helped  to  solve  the  land- 
owner’s labor  problem  and  give  him  a good  income 
without  depriving  him  of  much  control  over  his 
property.  The  lease,  covering  perhaps  only  the 
part  of  the  farm  devoted  to  orchard  or  vines,  ordi- 
narily ran  for  only  one  year.  The  work  was  to  be 
done  under  the  supervision  of  the  owner  or  his 
representative,  and  the  crop  marketed  and  the  re- 
turns made  to  him.  Frequently  the  landowner 
advanced  money  for  wages  and  guaranteed  bills 
at  the  American  stores.  The  shipping  firm  — 
and  in  many  cases  it  acted  as  agent  in  finding  farms 
for  tenants  and  tenants  for  farms  — supplied  needed 
crates,  baskets,  etc.,  for  shipping  and  generally  made 
advances  on  the  crop  which  was  then  mortgaged  to 
it.  Bills  incurred  at  stores  were  settled  at  the  end 
of  the  season.  Thus  it  becomes  clear  that  the 
Japanese  farmers  did  business  chiefly  with  other 
people’s  money,  in  so  far  as  they  can  be  said  really 
to  have  done  business  at  all.  Leases  marked  the 
first  or  the  second  step  from  a labor  contract.  Little 
control  and  permanency  went  with  them.  If  the 
tenant-boss  had  been  a boss  before,  he  ordinarily 
continued  to  live  in  the  bunk  house,  and,  if  he  had 
not,  he  took  up  his  residence  there  ; the  landowner 
continued  to  live  in  the  farm  house  which  together 

178 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


with  its  site  and,  likely,  other  property,  was  re- 
served in  the  lease.  In  exceptional  cases  the  owner 
lived  in  town  or  moved  there.  Thus  the  statement 
made  by  a Californian  a year  ago  that  the  J apanese 
had  driven  all  the  white  farmers  out  of  the  Valley  is 
wide  of  the  mark.  Tenant  farming  has  made  it  con- 
venient to  live  in  Vacaville  or  in  some  other  locality 
while  owning  orchards  or  vineyards  in  this  district, 
but  most  of  the  farmers  are  living  with  their  families 
where  they  have  always  lived.  The  stable  resident 
white  population  has  scarcely  been  affected,  so  far  as 
numbers  are  concerned,  by  Japanese  tenant  farming. 

The  Contribution  made  by  the  Japanese.  — The 
contribution  of  the  Japanese  in  the  Vaca  Valley  has 
been  as  fairly  efficient,  conveniently  secured,  and 
once  cheap  laborers,  and  as  acceptable  tenants. 
Efficient  labor  and  lower  cost  aided  in  the  growth 
of  the  fruit-growing  industry  but  the  Japanese  have 
had  to  do  chiefly  with  orchards  and  vineyards  al- 
ready developed.  The  Vaca  Valley  was  no  com- 
paratively undeveloped  community  at  the  time  of 
their  advent.  Their  contribution  was  to  maintain 
the  old  order  and  to  allow  for  the  gradual  expansion 
which  has  taken  place.  They  bought  little  land,  for 
most  of  it  was  already  developed  and  commanded 
such  high  prices  that  it  was  better  to  purchase  else- 
where. In  1908  only  four  ranches  had  been  pur- 
chased in  the  Valley  and  these  were  all  small. 

Changes  since  1908.  — Since  1908  there  have  been 
no  important  changes  in  the  situation  except  in 
connection  with  the  races  employed  and  the  wages 
paid,  and  these  have  already  been  noted. 

179 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Speaking  roughly,  it  may  be  said  that  the  com- 
munity has  fewer  adult  male  Japanese  living  in 
bunk  houses  and  many  more  poorly  housed  Spanish 
families  with  their  numerous  and  uncared-for  off- 
spring. Most  of  the  farms  owned  by  Japanese,  but 
heavily  mortgaged  in  1908,  have  been  lost  or  sold 
and  a few  more  have  been  purchased.  The  acreage 
owned  in  1914  was  348  acres  and  most  of  it  lay 
outside  of  the  fruit-growing  district.  The  acreage 
leased  is  about  the  same  as  in  1908,  or  in  1910. 
Leases  carrying  cash  rent  have  become  more  nu- 
merous in  years  following  high  prices  and  fewer  in 
years  following  low  prices.  Most  leases  are  still 
for  one  year  and  carry  the  same  limited  degree  of 
control  as  formerly.  The  tenants  nearly  all  live 
in  the  “ bunk  houses  ” erected  for  the  Asiatic 
laborers,  and  the  white  families  generally  occupy 
the  farm  residence.  This  means  that  the  housing 
of  the  Japanese  is  on  the  whole  very  poor.  As  the 
J apanese  have  gained  experience  and  the  number  of 
adventurers  among  them  has  decreased,  they  have 
been  more  appreciated  as  laborers  and  tenants — and 
but  little  reason  was  found  for  the  complaint  made 
of  them  in  1908.  With  decreasing  numbers  and  a 
tendency  on  the  part  of  the  settled  population  to 
deal  more  extensively  at  American  stores,  Japanese 
business  has  waned  in  Vacaville.  Instead  of  four 
Japanese  grocery  and  provision  stores,  there  are  now 
two.  The  boarding  houses  have  decreased  from  four 
to  two,  and  the  various  petty  shops  and  amusement 
places  have  decreased  in  about  the  same  proportion. 

In  1908  there  were  few  Japanese  married  women. 

180 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


At  present  they  number  about  seventy,  and  with 
their  coming,  living  conditions  have  improved 
somewhat.  The  number  of  children  is  still  small  — 
some  thirty  all  told,  it  is  said,  — and  there  is  no  school 
problem.  The  social  life  and  housing  of  the  Japa- 
nese in  Vacaville  appear  to  be  very  much  improved. 
They  were  formerly  colonized  in  the  Chinese  quar- 
ter ; they  now  have  extended  their  residence  places 
into  an  adjoining  block,  and  the  white  population 
has  very  largely  moved  out.  There  used  to  be  many 
fishermen  among  the  laborers  and  one  of  the  great 
evils  was  gambling  at  the  fourteen  gambling  houses 
maintained  by  Chinese  and  patronized  chiefly  by 
Japanese.  With  the  changes  in  the  population  this 
is  largely  a matter  of  the  past. 

Relations  Between  the  Races.  — As  to  the  rela- 
tions existing  between  the  Asiatics  and  the  white 
families  in  1908  the  Immigration  Commission  pre- 
sented the  following  summary : 

“ There  is  practically  no  association  between 
Chinese  and  Japanese  (this  is  true  of  the  East 
Indians  also)  and  the  white  population  of  the 
community  save  that  incidental  to  the  conduct  of 
business.  There  is,  however,  no  prejudice  against 
the  Chinese  save  that  due  to  difference  of  race. 
Against  the  Japanese  on  the  other  hand,  there  is 
a very  strong  prejudice.  It  is  partly  due  to  racial 
differences,  but  more  to  the  progress  made  by  the 
Japanese,  their  position  as  laborers  and  tenants, 
and  other  matters  commented  on  earlier  in  this 
report.  The  extent  of  this  prejudice  is  shown  by 
the  fact  that  three  years  ago  the  Japanese  mission 

181 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

was  burned  to  the  ground,  and  the  act  was,  in  a 
way,  approved  by  a great  many  of  the  natives. 
For  the  past  year  (previous  to  August,  1908), 
the  Japanese  have  tried  in  vain  to  get  a permit 
to  erect  a modern  church  building,  which  would 
not  only  comply  with  all  the  ordinances  of  the 
town  of  Vacaville,  but  would  be  superior  to  prac- 
tically all  of  the  buildings  in  the  community.”  ^ 

Prejudice  has  given  Way  to  Toleration.  — With 
time  and  with  changes  in  numbers  and  other  cir- 
cumstances already  noted,  this  acute  feeling  is  a 
matter  of  the  past.  Some  even  compare  the  Span- 
iards unfavorably  with  the  Japanese.  The  preju- 
dice of  six  years  ago  has  given  way  to  toleration  and 
acceptance  — within  limits.  In  social  matters  all 
Asiatics  are  still  in  but  not  an  integral  part  of  the 
community.  All  intercourse  is  a matter  of  business. 
From  my  inquiries,  the  alien  land  law  of  1913  is 
generally,  but  not  universally,  regarded  as  a good 
measure.  Even  two  managers  of  prominent  ship- 
ping firms  said  that  the  measure  was  good  legisla- 
tion. When  asked  about  the  possible  prohibition 
of  leasing  to  persons  ineligible  to  citizenship,  they 
replied  that  they  were  opposed  to  a measure  of  that 
kind  because  the  purchase  of  land  gave  the  Asiatics 
a regular  and  permanent  place  in  the  community, 
while  leasing  is  very  much  a labor  device  and  leaves 
the  white  landowners  in  control. 

Southern  California.  — In  some  parts  of  southern 
California  the  Japanese  have  made  considerable 
1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  24,  p.  198. 

182 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


advance  as  tenant  farmers,  growing  melons,  sugar 
beets,  celery,  berries  and  vegetables,  and  flowers. 
Most  of  the  acreage,  some  32,940  in  1912  — for  the 
eight  counties  — has  come  under  their  control  as 
farmers  within  comparatively  recent  years,  for  until 
twelve  years  ago  there  were  few  Japanese  in  that 
part  of  the  state.  About  1902,  however,  a con- 
siderable number  of  Japanese  employed  as  section 
hands  on  the  railroads  were  replaced  by  Mexicans 
and  sought  other  occupations.  Somewhat  later 
many  migrated  from  the  north  because  of  less 
opposition  shown  to  them  in  the  southern  coun- 
ties, and  this  migration  became  very  large  in 
1906  when  the  fire  of  that  year  drove  many  out 
of  San  Francisco.  And,  finally,  for  several  months 
seven  or  eight  years  ago,  a considerable  number 
entered  the  United  States  from  Mexico  and  a 
large  percentage  of  these  remained  in  southern 
California.  Thus  the  census  figures  for  Japanese 
enumerated  in  the  eight  southern  counties,  in- 
creased from  685  in  1900  to  13,285  in  1910.  The 
corresponding  but  not  entirely  comparable  number 
in  1913,  according  to  the  Japanese- American  Year- 
book, was  19,629. 

Thus  rapidly  increasing  in  numbers,  the  Japanese 
came  to  occupy  a conspicuous  place  in  the  citrus 
fruit  industry  and  the  growing  of  melons,  celery, 
berries,  and  vegetables,  first  as  laborers  and  then, 
except  in  the  citrus  industry,  as  tenant  farmers. 
The  growing  of  berries  and  vegetables  has  been 
most  conspicuous  in  Los  Angeles  county,  which 
with  a total  population  of  more  than  500,000  in 

183 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

1910  has  supplied  an  excellent  local  market  as 
well  as  good  shipping  facilities  north  and  east. 
The  details  presented  here  relate  to  this  county 
exclusively. 

Japanese  as  Laborers  and  Farmers  in  Los 
Angeles  County.  — In  the  case  of  the  Japanese  of 
Los  Angeles  county,  labor  in  the  berry  patches 
and  vegetable  gardens  was  quickly  followed  by 
growing  on  their  own  account,  for  the  transition 
from  farm  laborer  to  farmer  was  easily  made. 
Few  were  employed  as  agricultural  laborers  previous 
to  1900;  the  first  lease  dates  from  1901.  In  1905, 
the  Japanese  owned  16  tracts  embracing  369.5 
acres  and  leased  145  others  with  an  acreage  of 

1,636.  According  to  the  Census,  in  1910  they 

held  531  farms  with  an  aggregate  acreage  of  6,173.^ 
Corresponding  to  these  in  1912  there  were  794 
farms,  embracing  some  12,900  acres.  The  acre- 
age of  improved  land  in  farms  in  1909  was 

418,998,  or  many  times  the  number  (6,151)  held 
by  Japanese. 

Have  become  Important  Growers  of  Certain 
Crops.  — While  the  acreage  in  Japanese  farms 
has  been  comparatively  small,  from  the  point  of 
view  of  certain  crops  marketed,  their  farms  have 
for  several  years  been  of  the  first  importance. 
According  to  the  Census,  in  1910,  1,660  acres  were 
devoted  to  the  production  of  berries,  1,280  acres 
of  which  was  farmed  by  Japanese.  Of  some 
13.385  devoted  to  vegetables  other  than  potatoes, 
the  Japanese  held  1,905.  According  to  the  Immi- 
1 Census  Bulletin  127  (1914). 

184 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


gration  Commission,^  however,  they  produced  rel- 
atively as  large  a share  of  green  onions,  string 
beans,  peas,  lettuce,  and  similar  vegetables  as  of 
berries.  As  growers  of  other  things,  with  the 
exception  of  flowers,  they  cut  little  figure.^  With 
the  lapse  of  five  years  there  is  no  great  change. 
Investigation  at  the  public  markets  and  observation 
in  the  country  show  that  the  Japanese  control  the 
market  for  berries,  dominate  that  for  the  kind  of 
vegetables  noted  above,  and  are  the  important 
growers  of  flowers.  While  they  are  now  growing 
more  of  the  heavier  vegetables  — potatoes,  cab- 
bage, and  the  like  — these  are  not  among  their 
important  crops. 

Effect  on  Other  Growers.  — The  Immigration 
Commission  found  that  there  had  been  some  dis- 
placement of  growers  of  other  races,  but  that  the 

1 For  details  taken  from  the  report  of  the  Immigration  Commis- 
sion, see  its  Reports,  Vol.  24,  pp.  378-393,  where  an  account  of 
“Japanese  Farmers  of  Los  Angeles  County,  Cal.”  is  presented. 

2 The  following  table  has  been  compiled  from  Census  Bulletin 
127.  The  figures  are  for  1910. 


Crop 

Total 

Acreage 

Japanese 

Acreage 

Japa- 

nese 

Farms 

Report- 

ing 

Quantity  Produced 
BY  Japanese 

Value  Pro- 
duced BY 
Japanese 

Strawberries  . 
Blackberries  . 
Raspberries  . 
Beets  . . . 

Potatoes  . . 
Other  vege- 
tables . . 

1,380 

280 

14,191 

4.482 

13.385 

1,080 

48 

162 

210 

187 

1.905 

223 

23 

53 

2 

35 

221 

3,771,461  (qts.) 
142,300  (qts.) 

1.185.525  (qts.) 

1,580  (tons) 
16,482  (bu.) 

I337.978 

8,085 

43.387 

9.480 

12,380 

237.964 

185 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

advance  of  the  Japanese  had  been  chiefly  by  ex- 
panding the  acreage  devoted  to  this  intensive  farm- 
ing for  which  they  are  peculiarly  adapted.  That 
such  was  the  case  is  shown  by  the  Census  data  for 
1899  and  1910.  During  the  ten  years  the  acreage 
of  small  fruits  increased  from  737  to  1,660,  that  of 
potatoes  from  3,007  to  4,482,  that  of  other  vege- 
tables from  4,160  to  13,385.  There  can  be  no 
doubt,  however,  that  the  decrease  in  the  number 
of  Chinese  gardeners  was  hastened  by  the  Japanese 
competition  and  in  some  instances  Italian  and 
other  growers  withdrew  before  their  competition 
or  leased  their  land  to  them.  In  the  years  which 
have  passed  since  the  Immigration  Commission 
made  its  investigation,  the  situation  has  not 
changed  in  this  respect. 

The  Progress  of  the  Japanese  Explained.  — 

That  the  Japanese  have  advanced  as  growers  of 
certain  crops  while  others  have  not,  is  easily  ex- 
plained. They  were  very  efficient  as  laborers  in 
growing  berries  and  certain  kinds  of  vegetables, 
and  because  of  this  efficiency  and  the  fact  that 
they  were  formerly  cheap  laborers,  came  to  do 
most  of  the  work  in  the  berry  patches  and  vegetable 
gardens.  With  ambition  to  rise  and  little  capital 
required  to  purchase  the  few  implements  needed 
and  to  pay  the  initial  rent,  and  with  the  possibility 
of  chattel  loans  on  crops.  It  is  only  natural  that 
they  should  in  many  cases  have  become  independent 
farmers.  Moreover,  they  formerly  had  an  advan- 
tage in  hiring  desirable  Japanese  help.  More 
recently,  if  married,  they  have  had  an  equally  great 

186 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


advantage  in  the  work  done  by  the  wives  who  almost 
invariably  labor  regularly  in  the  fields,  for  long  hours 
and  frequently  seven  days  per  week.  Moreover, 
because  of  their  efficiency  as  growers,  smaller  ex- 
penses, lower  standards  in  some  of  the  details  of 
living,  and  more  strenuous  application,  they  could 
afford  to  pay  more  rent  for  the  land  they  leased. 
But  one  of  the  most  important  factors  in  explaining 
their  advance  is  found  in  the  conditions  surround- 
ing land  ownership  in  Los  Angeles  county. 

Speculation  in  Land  and  Tenancy.  — Much  of 
the  agricultural  land  in  Los  Angeles  county  is 
being  held  until  it  can  be  marketed  as  city  lots 
and  as  villa  sites.  Farms  have  taken  on  high 
speculative  values  and  much  of  the  land  is  held  in 
large  tracts  by  men  of  wealth.  The  chief  gain 
from  it  is  in  the  enhanced  value  as  population  and 
wealth  increase.  White  families  who  would  pay 
annually  $4  to  $10  per  acre  for  it  to  produce  alfalfa 
and  similar  crops  ordinarily  do  not  wish  it  because 
the  owner  does  not  care  to  provide  the  house  and 
other  improvements  such  families  demand.  Home 
building  by  farmers  is  out  of  the  question  in  most 
of  the  communities  around  Los  Angeles.  The 
Japanese  tenants  pay  $18,  $20,  $25,  and  $30  per 
acre  per  year,  besides  the  water  rent  for  irrigation 
purposes,  and  demand  little  or  no  outlay  on  the 
part  of  the  landowner  for  their  housing.  In  some 
cases  the  Japanese  tenants  occupy  the  Chinese 
bunk  houses  erected  when  the  land  was  farmed  in 
the  older  way.  In  other  cases  they  occupy  boarded- 
up,  unceiled,  and  unpainted  structures  costing  from 

187 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

$100  to  $250.  Frequently  the  tenant  erects  the 
cheap  structure  himself,  the  lease  providing  that  he 
may  remove  it  when  the  time  expires.  In  most  cases 
the  Japanese  farmers  are  “squatting”  upon  the  land 
for  a time,  until  its  sale  or  possibly  the  rotation  of 
crops  will  make  it  necessary  for  him  to  vacate. 

Typical  Cases  about  Gardena.  — Thus  if  one 
goes  south  from  Los  Angeles  he  comes  to  a 600- 
acre  ranch  until  recently  used  for  pasture,  the 
production  of  hay,  and  the  growing  of  eucalyptus 
trees.  A considerable  part  of  this  has  been  leased 
to  Japanese  whose  houses  have  been  erected  in 
two  groups.  Trees  have  been  removed  and  the 
cleared  land  and  the  hay  fields  and  pastures  divided 
into  small  tracts  for  the  production  of  berries  and 
vegetables.  The  tenants  pay  for  the  water  used 
and  $25  per  acre  as  rent.  The  contrast  between 
the  old  and  the  new  is  shown  in  the  accompanying 
photographs  (numbered  “ 18  ” and  “ 19  ”).  Across 
the  highway  a part  of  another  tract  is  leased  to 
several  parties  growing  the  same  crops  and  flowers. 
Near  Gardena  the  same  condition  may  be  observed 
on  a number  of  what  were  once  large  farms  de- 
voted to  extensive  agriculture  (as  in  number^”  20  ”). 
There  the  photograph  showing  the  old  and  the 
new  was  taken  (number  “21”).  Still  farther  on 
is  a ranch  of  several  thousand  acres  some  six  hundred 
of  which  are  now  leased  in  small  tracts  for  periods 
of  from  three  to  five  years.  The  tenant  houses, 
like  the  one  here  reproduced  (number  “22”),  are 
arranged  in  six  groups.  Most  of  the  small  plots 
are  devoted  to  growing  strawberries.  The  rent 

188 


CovTtesy  of  Dr.  Takagi. 

i8.  A Japanese  Settlement  on  a 500-AcRE  Ranch. 


19.  The  Same  Ranch  looking  in  the  Other  Direction. 


Courtesy  of  Dr.  Takagi. 

20.  A Typical  Japanese  Settlement  near  Gardena. 


Courtesy  of  Dr.  Takagi. 

21.  The  Old  and  the  New  separated  by  a Wire  Fence. 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


runs  from  $20  to  $25  and  the  tenant  pays  so  much 
per  hour  for  the  water  required  for  irrigating.  The 
greater  part  of  the  large  ranch  is  still  used  for 
producing  hay.  The  contrast  between  the  hay 
land  and  the  strawberry  patches  is  seen  in  photo- 
graphs “ 23  ” and  “ 24.” 

East  of  Los  Angeles.  — East  of  Los  Angeles  the 
situation  is  not  very  different  in  certain  communi- 
ties. In  one  typical  case  some  eight  miles  from 
the  center  of  the  city  I observed  a ranch  of  185 
acres  which  had  been  leased  for  a period  of  three 
years  to  thirteen  families  for  growing  strawberries, 
bush  berries,  and  vegetables.  These  tenants  had 
agreed  to  pay  $25  per  acre  as  rent  and  the  actual 
cost  of  the  water  was  to  be  divided  pro  rata  among 
them.  The  rent  proved  to  be  exorbitant,  however, 
and  upon  the  intervention  of  a Japanese  business 
man,  had  been  reduced  to  $20  or  $22.50  per  acre 
per  year.  The  houses  of  the  usual  character  had 
been  erected  in  a group  facing  a lateral  road  running 
back  from  the  main  highway.^ 

1 The  numerous  subdivision  of  farms  for  the  purpose  of  intensive 
cultivation  explains  the  fact  that  the  average  of  Japanese  holdings 
is  only  a little  over  1 6 acres.  The  distribution  of  the  794  holdings 
in  1912,  according  to  Mr.  Naka,  was  as  follows; 


Size  or  Holding 

No.  OF 
Holdings 

Per- 

centage 

Size  of  Holding 

No.  OF 
Holdings 

Per- 

centage 

Under  5 acres 

130 

16.37 

50  to  70  acres 

22 

2-77 

5 to  10  acres 

277 

34-89 

70  to  100  acres 

9 

1. 13 

10  to  20  acres 

203 

25-57 

100  to  150  acres 

5 

-63 

20  to  30  acres 

72 

9.07 

150  to  250  acres 

5 

-63 

30  to  40  acres 

45 

5-66 

250  acres  and  over 

2 

.26 

40  to  50  acres 

24 

3.02 

189 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


The  Significant  Things  in  the  Situation.  — This 
describes  the  situation  as  far  as  most  of  the  Jap- 
anese farming  in  Los  Angeles  county  is  concerned. 
Rude  shelter,  high  rents  made  possible  by  efficiency 
in  growing  crops  which  make  little  appeal  to  white 
farmers,  and  limited  tenure  are  characteristic. 
From  the  point  of  view  of  the  Japanese  it  marks 
an  advance  over  working  for  wages,  for  they  have 
a chance  to  get  what  they  produce,  and  have  a 
place  in  which  to  live  with  their  families  for  a 
period  of  years.  From  the  point  of  view  of  the 
speculative  landholder  his  land  yields  a larger  in- 
come which  pays  taxes  and  adds  to  the  increment 
of  capital  value  taken  on  as  Los  Angeles  continues 
her  rapid  growth.  From  the  point  of  view  of  the 
community  it  has  not  meant  any  great  material 
improvement.  The  land  has  been  temporarily 
exploited  and  then  has  been  or  is  to  be  surrendered 
without  any  particular  improvement.  It  has  meant 
some  displacement  of  other  growers,  but  chiefly  a 
more  abundant  supply  of  berries,  vegetables,  and 
flowers  to  be  had  at  low  prices.  For  the  prices  are 
relatively  low.  Frequently  the  growing  of  straw- 
berries has  been  “ overdone  ” and  there  has  at 
times  been  complaint  on  the  part  of  growers  other 
than  the  Japanese  that  the  prices  of  vegetables 
were  not  remunerative.  In  some  cases  the  market 
has  been  so  " poor  ” that  Japanese  tenants  have 
lost  money,  and  occasionally  when  they  have  not 
made  their  rent,  they  have  “ broken  ” their  con- 
tracts. There  is  reason  to  believe,  however,  that 
in  some  cases  the  difficulties  of  the  Japanese  have 

190 


Courtesy  of  Dr.  Takagi. 


22.  A Typical  Japanese  Tenant’s  House.  In  Foreground 
Three  Graduates  of  Leland  Stanford  who  are  “making 
GOOD  ’’  IN  Los  Angeles. 


Courtesy  oj  Dr.  Takagi. 

23.  The  Carson  Ranch  — “Hay  Land.’’ 


Courtesy  of  Dr.  Takagi. 

24.  The  Same  Carson  Ranch  — ■ irrigated  and  producing 
Strawberries. 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


been  due  to  the  advantage  taken  by  the  middle- 
men rather  than  to  overproduction. 

About  Montebello  and  Newmark.  — A part  of 
the  situation,  however,  remains  to  be  described. 
Under  the  circumstances  it  is  not  surprising  that 
the  Japanese  have  seldom  purchased  the  land  they 
till.  It  is  cheaper  to  rent  than  to  buy  in  most 
cases  where  the  land  might  be  purchased.  In 
some  localities,  however,  there  is  a closer  relation 
between  the  selling  price  and  the  productive  value 
of  the  soil  and  a few  Japanese  have  bought  small 
tracts,  usually  of  less  than  ten  acres.  Such  is  the 
case  about  Montebello  and  Newmark  where  several 
land-owning  Japanese  farmers,  chiefly  growers  of 
flowers,  were  visited.  One  of  these  men  owns 
five  acres,  where  he  conducts  a nursery  and  upon 
which  he  has  erected  a greenhouse  and  a beautiful 
typical  American  suburban  cottage  of  six  rooms, 
which  is  also  well  furnished.  His  business  amounts 
to  $4,000  or  $5,000  per  year.  Across  the  road 

Mr.  owns  five  acres  on  which  he  is  growing 

oranges  and  carnations.  With  the  aid  of  his  wife 
— he  hires  help  during  the  busy  season  only  — he 
last  year  cleared  $2,000.  The  small  cottage  was 
erected  before  he  purchased  the  place.  Of  his 
original  ten  acres  he  has  sold  five  to  an  American 
who  has  built  a beautiful  home  about  a hundred 
yards  from  the  house  of  his  Japanese  neighbor. 
Not  far  away  another  Japanese  has  a five-acre 
nursery.  The  “ shack  ” on  the  land  when  pur- 
chased is  used  for  the  hired  help  and  a new  struc- 
ture of  two  rooms  somewhat,  though  not  much, 

191 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

better,  has  been  built  for  the  family.  Just  across 
the  road  is  an  American  who  has  recently  purchased 
five  acres  on  which  he  has  built  a beautiful  little 
four-room  cottage.  He  is  growing  the  same  things 
as  his  Japanese  neighbor  but  less  successfully, 
because  his  soil  is  not  so  good  and  perhaps  his 
application  is  less  strenuous.  Still  farther  on  the 
best  nursery  of  all  seen  was  visited.  This  Jap- 
anese owns  three  acres,  and  with  his  wife  and  two 
children  lives  in  a tiny  but  well-built  and  nicely 
painted  cottage  which  he  has  erected.  For  the 
second  time,  after  visiting  a dozen  or  more  places, 
the  wife  was  not  found  at  work  out  of  doors.  Across 
the  way  several  new  and  larger  cottages  have  been 
recently  built  by  Americans  on  cheap  lots  in  a new 
part  of  the  town  of  Montebello.  At  Newmark 

Mr.  had  purchased  2|  acres  of  rather  poor 

soil  just  before  the  alien  land  law  went  into  effect. 
For  this  and  the  poorly  constructed  cottage  which 
had  cost  not  to  exceed  $400,  and  some  inexpensive 
outbuildings,  he  paid  $2,700.  He  is  beginning  to 
develop  a nursery  and  he,  his  wife,  and  two  grown 
sons  are  living  in  the  house,  which  as  yet  contains 

little  furniture.  Down  the  road  lies  Mr.  ’s 

small  plot  for  which  he  had  paid  $2,000  last  year. 
He  had  worked  as  a gardener  in  Los  Angeles  for 
four  years  and  the  purchase  price  had  been  paid  in 
part  out  of  the  earnings  he  had  saved.  While  his 
brother  continued  to  work  in  the  city  so  that  he 
might  bring  money  to  this  joint  enterprise,  he  had 
himself  built  the  large  “ lathe  house  ” for  his 
flowers  and  a tiny  four- room,  nicely  painted 

192 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


cottage.  The  material  for  the  house  cost  $ioo. 
He  is  making  a home  for  his  prospective  bride. 

General  Impressions.  — To  present  more  detail 
is  mostly  to  repeat.^  My  lasting  impressions  were 
that  these  landowning  farmers  and  their  wives 
are  thrifty  and  industrious,  that  when  they  became 
landowners  the  miserable  standards  of  the  tenant 
gave  way  to  better  ones  though  not  so  good  on  the 
average  as  those  observed  by  their  white  neighbors, 
and  that  the  worst  evil  in  the  alien  land  law  was 
to  place  a premium  on  “ squatter  ” life  and  to 
stand  in  the  way  of  an  approach  to  the  American 
standard,  especially  in  the  matter  of  housing, 
where  alone,  in  his  living,  is  the  J apanese  commonly 
deficient  as  compared  to  his  white  neighbor. 

Anti- Japanese  Feeling  not  Strong.  — The  feeling 
against  the  Japanese  is  not  strong  in  southern 
California.  Instances  where  white  families  have 
built  on  adjoining  tracts  have  been  given  — one 
indeed  where  the  land  had  been  purchased  from  a 
Japanese  who  had  more  than  he  needed  and  could 
conveniently  pay  for.  These  farmers  say  that 
their  white  neighbors  treat  them  well.  Only  here 
and  there  does  there  appear  to  be  any  pronounced 
feeling  against  them  as  neighbors.^  Yet  some 
feeling,  though  not  of  a personal  nature,  seems 
to  be  developing.  It  appears  to  be  due  to  an 
assumption  on  the  part  of  many  that  an  Asiatic 

^ Several  localities  other  than  those  mentioned  were  visited,  but 
those  described  are  typical  of  all. 

^ I was  interested  to  find  that  the  anti-Japanese  editorial  in  the 
California  Cultivator,  May  15,  1913,  was  based  on  one  complaint 
from  a white  farmer  who  had  recently  acquired  a Japanese  neighbor. 

193 


o 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

race  should  remain  in  an  inferior  position  and  to 
the  fact  that  in  competition  the  Japanese  have  an 
advantage  in  a lower  standard  of  housing,  in  work- 
ing long  hours  and  more  days,  and  in  the  work  of 
their  wives  in  the  gardens  and  berry  patches.  The 
average  American  assumes  that  wives  should  not 
work  regularly  at  the  chief  gainful  pursuit  of  the 
family. 

About  Livingston.  — The  most  interesting  com- 
munity investigated  is  near  Livingston,  a small 
town  on  the  Southern  Pacific  Railroad,  between 
Turlock  and  Merced.  It  is  unusual  in  that  the 
farming  engaged  in  was  not  preceded  by  labor  in 
the  vicinity  and  that  the  race  is  not  given  a dis- 
tinctly inferior  position  in  the  community. 

Here  some  years  ago  a Japanese  corporation 
purchased  as  a speculative  venture  some  three 
thousand  acres  of  land  which  had  been  devoted 
to  extensive  farming.  This  has  been  subdivided 
and  a large  part  of  it  sold  to  Japanese  farmers. 
A few  have  purchased  or  leased  other  land  from 
American  residents  so  that  now  sixteen  farms, 
embracing  about  i,6oo  acres,  have  been  developed. 
They  are  devoted  chiefly  to  the  growing  of  vege- 
tables, grapes,  and  fruit,  which  until  recently  had 
found  little  place  in  the  agriculture  of  the  com- 
munity. Japanese,  “ white  ” laborers,  and  Mexi- 
cans are  employed  in  harvesting  the  crops. 

Personal  Observations.  Relations  between  the 
Races  the  Best  found  in  California.  — Most  of  the 
Japanese  families  are  well  housed.  Taken  as  a 

194 


SOME  COMMUNITY  OBSERVATIONS 


whole  their  residences  are  about  as  good  as  those  of 
their  American  neighbors.  Most  of  them  are  well 
furnished  with  American  furniture.  Their  rela- 
tions with  their  neighbors  are  cordial,  though  social 
intercourse  is  somewhat  limited  because  of  the 
poor  command  of  English  on  the  part  of  the  Jap- 
anese women.  Several  persons  were  interviewed, 
and  all  spoke  of  the  Japanese  as  desirable  members 
of  the  community.  There  is  no  discrimination 
against  them  in  the  school  or  elsewhere.  Most 
of  them  are  Christians  and  attend  the  churches 
of  the  community.  One,  who  had  taught  school 
in  Japan,  has  been  a trustee  of  one  of  the  churches 
for  five  years  and  is  now  assistant  superintendent 
of  the  Sunday  school.  Among  the  Japanese  an 
organization  has  been  formed,  and  a hall  erected 
where  both  religious  and  agricultural  meetings  are 
held.  The  wives  of  the  farmers  are  also  organized, 
and  once  a month  the  wife  of  a former  missionary 
in  Japan  comes  from  Turlock  to  teach  them  needle- 
work and  domestic  economy.  No  doubt  the  ex- 
cellent housekeeping  observed  is  explained  in  part 
by  this  fact. 

The  Japanese  farmers  now  number  some  twenty- 
two.  All  but  four  of  these  are  married.  There 
are  twenty-three  children,  and  the  number  is  in- 
creasing at  the  rate  of  about  six  per  year.  At 
present  only  five  of  them  are  old  enough  to  attend 
school.  Four  of  these  were  seen,  and,  except  in 
color,  seemed  to  be  thoroughly  American. 

In  closing  this  brief  statement  relating  to  Liv- 
ingston, I cannot  refrain  from  setting  down  some 

195 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

personal  notes  concerning  the  former  teacher  to 
whom  reference  has  been  made  and  his  family. 
With  a change  of  details,  much  the  same  might  be 
written  of  three  or  four  of  these  Japanese  families. 

Mr. came  to  this  country  eleven  years  ago. 

Nine  years  ago  he  purchased  a farm  and  was 
joined  by  his  wife  and  two  small  daughters.  He 
now  owns  a walnut  and  fig  ranch  of  thirty-six 
acres,  which  was  bearing  when  he  purchased  it, 
and  leases  a vineyard  besides.  He  occupies  a 
cottage  of  five  rooms ; the  house  is  in  good  repair, 
and  it  and  the  premises  are  well  kept.  The  floors 
are  well  carpeted  and  as  a part  of  the  furnishings 
of  the  living  room  are  four  leather-seated  oak 
chairs  and  a few  well-framed  lithographed  pictures 
— all  American.  In  the  back  parlor  is  a piano, 
and  among  the  conveniences  in  the  kitchen  is 
found  a standard  washing  machine.  The  two 
daughters  had  just  begun  to  take  music  lessons 
from  an  American  teacher.  One  of  the  girls  was 
in  the  eighth  grade,  the  other  in  the  sixth.  Both 
are  thoroughly  American  in  every  respect  save 
that  they  are  more  gracious  and  more  polite  than 
the  average  native  child.  Their  Americanism  had 
extended  even  to  insisting  upon  having  American 
dolls  with  blond  hair  and  blue  eyes. 


196 


CHAPTER  VIII 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 

The  Alien  Land  Law  Discriminatory.  — With  the 
approval  of  the  governor  May  19,  1913,  an  alien 
land  bill  became  a law  in  the  state  of  California. 
It  is  discriminatory  against  Asiatics  in  that  while 
it  confers  upon  aliens  eligible  to  citizenship,  the 
same  rights  as  citizens  in  the  ownership  and  leasing 
of  real  property,  it  limits  leases  of  agricultural  lands 
by  other  aliens  to  periods  of  three  years  and  owner- 
ship to  the  extent  provided  by  existing  treaties.^ 

The  Outcome  of  a Long  Struggle.  — This  anti- 
Japanese  measure,  for  such  it  is,  was  the  outcome 
of  various  discriminatory  measures  under  considera- 
tion by  the  legislature  for  many  years.  In  1909, 
as  a result  of  the  President’s  intervention,  a measure 
designed  to  prevent  the  acquisition  of  land  by  Jap- 
anese was  amended  so  as  to  apply  to  all  aliens,  and 
thus  lost  its  discriminatory  character  and  failed  to 
pass.  Again  in  1911  a measure  forbidding  the  ac- 
quisition of  land  by  aliens  ineligible  to  citizenship 
and  forbidding  leasing  by  them,  after  being  passed 
by  one  branch  of  the  legislature  was  killed  in  the 

* See  Appendix  A for  extracts  from  the  Treaty  of  Commerce  and 
Navigation  and  Protocol  between  Japan  and  the  United  States  of 
America  of  February  21,  1911,  and  Appendix  B for  California’s 
Alien  Land  Law  of  1913. 


197 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


Other.  Pressure  had  again  been  exerted  from 
Washington,  and  the  Asiatic  Exclusion  League 
weakened  in  its  hostile  position  and  advised  against 
its  enactment.  Moreover,  the  Panama-Pacific  Ex- 
position Company  had  appeared  as  an  opponent 
of  all  legislation  likely  to  injure  its  enterprise,  and 
the  governor  was  satisfied  to  leave  matters  as  they 
were.  But  in  1913  the  situation  was  different,  for 
the  national  administration  was  Democratic,  the 
majority  of  the  members  of  the  state  legislature 
and  the  governor,  Progressive-Republican,  and 
instead  of  the  one  serving  as  a check  on  the  other, 
its  intervention  assisted  in  enacting  the  offensive 
measure.  While  the  enactment  of  the  law  was  not 
merely  a piece  of  politics  emanating  from  a desire 
“ to  put  the  President  in  a hole,”  as  some  have 
asserted  it  to  be,  political  considerations  had  some- 
thing to  do  with  it. 

History  of  the  Alien  Land  Legislation.  Election 
Promises.  — The  legislative  history  of  the  alien 
land  bill  is  briefly  this.^  Of  the  state  platforms 
adopted  by  the  political  parties  in  1913,  that  of 
the  Democratic  party  alone  contained  a plank 
relative  to  the  holding  of  land  by  Asiatics.  Not 
only  did  that  party,  as  it  and  other  parties  had  done 
for  years,  proclaim  itself  in  favor  of  an  amended 
exclusion  law  which  would  apply  to  all  eastern 
Asiatics ; it  inserted  in  its  platform  a plank  read- 
ing, ” We  favor  the  passage  of  a bill  that  will 

1 Its  history  has  been  presented  fully  by  Franklin  Hichbom  in 
Chapters  XVI  to  XX  of  his  admirable  Story  of  the  California  Legis- 
lature of  1913. 


198 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


prevent  any  alien  not  eligible  to  citizenship  from 
owning  land  in  the  state  of  California.”  Having 
been  a minority  party  in  the  legislature  when 
federal  intervention  had  defeated  anti-Japanese 
bills,  this  plank  was  given  a prominent  place  in  the 
platform,  and  in  the  campaign  which  followed  the 
subject  was  made  one  of  the  most  emphasized  issues 
in  the  state.  Much  campaign  literature  was  dis- 
tributed, some  of  it  attributing  to  Mr.  Wilson  the 
view  that  the  policy  of  exclusion  should  be  applied 
in  dealing  with  the  problem  of  “ Chinese  and  Jap- 
anese coolie  immigration,”  and  calling  attention 
to  then  President  Roosevelt’s  message  of  1906, 
urging  upon  Congress  amendment  of  the  naturali- 
zation law  so  that  the  Japanese  might  become 
American  citizens.  Though  the  Progressive-Re- 
publicans as  a party  took  no  position  on  the  “ Asiatic 
question  ” and  made  their  successful  fight  on  a 
platform  calling  for  constructive  progressive  legis- 
lation, many  of  the  candidates  for  office  went  on 
record  in  favor  of  restrictive  legislation.  Some  of 
them,  indeed,  had  been  earnest  advocates  of  such 
legislation  in  the  previous  sessions  of  the  legis- 
lature. Moreover,  it  was  closely  affiliated  with 
organized  labor,  which  has  always  been  foremost 
in  agitating  legislation  against  Asiatics.  The  State 
Federation  of  Labor  and  related  organizations  in 
1913  asked  the  various  candidates  for  office  to 
state  their  positions  with  reference  to  the  Asiatic 
problem,  and  with  the  usual  result  — a majority 
reported  that  they  were  in  favor  of  restrictive  legis- 
lation. Some,  like  Mr.  Bradford  of  Sacramento, 

199 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

pledged  themselves,  if  elected,  to  introduce  restric- 
tive measures  relating  to  land  ownership  by  Asiatics. 
Thus  only  a minority  of  the  members  of  the  legis- 
lature went  to  Sacramento  free  from  platform  or 
personal  pledges.  Following  the  election  the  Asiatic 
Exclusion  League,  which  had  proved  to  be  timid 
in  1911,  went  on  record  in  favor  of  the  radical 
Sanford  measure  which  had  been  defeated  two 
years  before.^  This  would  not  only  have  forbidden 
the  acquisition  of  land  by  purchase  by  Asiatics ; 
but  “ section  8 ” provided  that  “ every  contract, 
agreement,  or  lease  of  any  land  made  with  or  to 
any  alien,  not  eligible  to  citizenship  under  the  laws 
of  the  United  States,  shall  be  null  and  void.”  And 
on  the  other  hand,  the  Panama- Pacific  Exposition 
Company  made  its  plans  to  prevent  discriminating 
legislation  which  would  imperil  the  exposition  to 
be  held  in  1915  and  for  which  the  state  was  being 
heavily  taxed. 

Opposition  of  the  Panama-Pacific  Exposition 
Company  to  Alien  Land  Legislation.  — The  Ex- 
position Company  worked  through  a special  com- 
mittee which  devoted  itself  entirely  to  dealing 
with  the  problem  involved  in  discriminatory  legis- 
lation. An  attempt  was  made  to  prevent  the  in- 
troduction of  measures  which  might  be  construed 
as  hostile  to  Asiatics  and  thought  to  be  offensive 
to  them,  and  San  Francisco  papers,  it  was  said, 
had  agreed  to  say  nothing  of  failures  to  redeem 
preelection  and  platform  pledges.  But  this  effort  to 
” hush  up  ” the  whole  matter  failed  and  the  first  days 
1 At  its  meeting  of  Dec.  15,  1912. 

200 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


of  the  session  witnessed  the  introduction  of  several 
bills  in  Assembly  and  Senate  designed  to  bar  aliens 
or  certain  classes  of  aliens  from  ownership  of  the  soil. 

Various  Measures  presented  to  the  Legislature 
to  meet  the  “Problem.”  — Some  of  the  measures 
were  discriminatory,  while  others  were  not,  but 
the  “ problem  ” attacked  by  most  of  them,  if  not  by 
all,  was  that  of  the  holding  of  agricultural  land  by 
Japanese.  Most  of  the  men  who  introduced  bills 
came  from  districts  in  which  the  Japanese  were 
conspicuous  as  farmers  or  as  laborers  in  agricultural 
industries.  The  Democratic  Sanford-Shearer  bill 
(Senate  Bill  No.  27,  Assembly  Bill  No.  113)  squared 
with  the  Democratic  platform.  It  was  less  radical 
than  the  Sanford  measure,  defeated  in  1911,  in 
that  it  did  not  declare  leasing  null  and  void.  One 
Birdsall  bill  (Senate  Bill  No.  5)  prohibited  the 
acquisition  of  land  by  purchase  by  aliens  who  had 
not  declared  their  intention  to  become  citizens, 
but  expressly  authorized  leasing  of  lands  by  such 
parties.  Another  bill  introduced  by  the  Senator 
was  along  the  lines  of  the  law  finally  adopted, 
aliens  other  than  those  eligible  to  citizenship  being 
limited  to  the  acquisition,  possession,  enjoyment, 
and  transfer  “ of  real  property,  or  any  interest 
therein,  in  the  manner  and  to  the  extent  and  for 
the  purposes  prescribed  by  any  treaty  now  existing 
between  the  Government  of  the  United  States 
and  the  nation  or  country  of  which  such  alien  is  a 
citizen  or  subject,  and  not  otherwise.”  Senator 
Larkin  introduced  a bill  (Senate  Bill  No.  416) 
which  drew  the  line  between  citizens  and  aliens 


201 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

who  had  declared  their  intention  to  become  citi- 
zens, and  all  other  aliens,  and  made  unlawful  the 
acquisition  by  the  last  named  of  any  real  property 
except  by  succession  or  through  a debt  or  lien. 
Assemblyman  Bradford,  who  had  made  his  cam- 
paign on  that  plank,  introduced  a bill  (Assembly 
Bill  No.  183)  prohibiting  the  acquisition  of  land 
by  aliens  ineligible  to  citizenship  except  by  succes- 
sion or  through  debt,  and  limiting  leases  by  them 
to  periods  of  three  years,  if  of  real  estate  for  agri- 
cultural purposes,  of  five  years  if  town  or  city  lots. 
Most  of  these  bills  defined  as  “ aliens,”  for  the 
purpose  in  hand,  corporations  a majority  of  whose 
stock  was  held  by  the  class  of  aliens  whose  rights 
they  would  restrict.  Assemblyman  Cary  intro- 
duced a bill  (Assembly  Bill  No.  10)  placing  limita- 
tions upon  all  aliens  and  avoiding  all  discrimination 
between  aliens  of  different  races.  And  there  were 
other  bills  relating  to  land  ownership. 

Only  a Discriminatory  Measure  Acceptable.  — 
This  entire  mass  of  proposed  legislation  was  re- 
ferred to  the  Committees  on  Judiciary  of  the 
respective  houses.  The  limitations  upon  aliens, 
and  especially  upon  corporations,  rather  than  upon 
Asiatic  aliens,  called  forth  protests  from  the  San 
Francisco  Real  Estate  Board  and  Chambers  of 
Commerce,  Boards  of  Trade,  and  Merchants’  As- 
sociations meeting  in  San  Francisco  February  20, 
1913.^  The  opposition  was  so  strong  that  it  even- 

^ For^these  and  several  other  later  protests  see  Proposed  Land  Bill: 
The  Other  Side,  prepared  and  published  by  the  Japanese  Association 
of  America,  San  Francisco,  1913. 

202 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


tually  became  evident  that  a bill  restricting  the 
rights  of  all  aliens,  and  especially  of  corporations 
the  majority  of  whose  stock  was  held  by  aliens, 
could  not  be  enacted  into  law.  Too  many  persons 
would  be  affected  and  the  desire  for  the  capital 
of  European  investors  was  too  pressing.  Only  a 
discriminatory  bill  could  pass.  After  hearings  were 
held  on  the  various  bills,  at  which  representatives  ^ 
of  all  parties  were  heard  — the  spokesmen  for  the 
Panama- Pacific  Exposition  Company,  and  Dr. 
Johnson  and  a few  others  for  the  Japanese  on  the 
one  side,  labor  leaders,  Mr.  Phelan,  and  Elk  Grove 
citizens  on  the  other,  the  Assembly  Committee  on 
Judiciary  April  4 reported  a discriminatory  bill.^ 
This  substitute  bill  provided  that  aliens  might 
acquire  land  and  hold  it  for  one  year  (or,  if  minors, 
until  one  year  after  reaching  their  majority),  but 
that  it  must  then  be  disposed  of  unless  they  de- 
clared their  intention  to  become  citizens,  and  that 
“ every  corporation,  the  majority  of  the  issued 
capital  stock  of  which  is  owned  by  aliens  who  are 
ineligible  to  become  citizens  of  the  United  States 
under  the  naturalization  laws  thereof,  shall  be 
considered  an  alien  within  the  meaning  of  this  act.” 
It  limited  leases  by  those  aliens  whose  rights  were 
curtailed  tp  five-year  periods.  After  the  enactment 
of  this  bill  by  a vote  of  60  to  15,  a similar  measure 

1 There  seems  to  be  little  foundation  for  the  statement  that  the 
opponents  of  the  proposed  legislation  were  not  given  a fair  oppor- 
tunity to  be  heard. 

^ Though  few  Japanese  had  leased  land  about  Elk  Grove,  which  is 
near  Florin,  an  agreement  had  been  signed  by  most  of  the  landowners 
to  the  effect  that  they  would  not  seU  or  lease  land  to  Japanese. 

203 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


was  reported  by  the  Judiciary  Committee  of  the 
Senate.  Its  clause  relating  to  corporations  was 
not  discriminatory,  but  the  objection  to  it  was  so 
great  because  it  was  not  discriminatory  that  it 
was  amended  to  agree  with  the  corresponding 
clause  of  the  Assembly  bill. 

How  the  Public  viewed  the  Proposed  Legislation. 
— Both  of  these  substitute  bills  discriminated 
against  Asiatics  directly  in  the  clauses  relating  to 
corporations,  and  indirectly  in  the  clauses  relating 
to  natural  persons  because  they  cannot  declare 
their  intention  to  become  citizens  of  the  United 
States  under  the  present  naturalization  law. 
Though  it  grew  out  of  an  agitation  initiated  by 
labor  unions,  interest  in  this  proposed  legislation 
became  intensive  as  it  was  discussed.  Most  of  its 
support  came  from  the  agricultural  districts.  A 
great  majority  of  the  newspapers  favored  it.  A 
petition  signed  by  more  than  seventy  persons 
(though  not  all  of  them  were  residents  of  the  com- 
munity) was  presented  from  Florin  urging  that  leg- 
islation should  be  enacted  before  the  close  of  the 
session.  Protests  were  made  by  the  directors  of  the 
Panama-Pacific  Exposition  Company  (several  of 
whom  had  no  further  wish  than  that  the  matter 
lay  over  until  another  session),  the  Delta  Associa- 
tion of  California,  representing  large  landed  inter- 
ests in  the  Delta  country,  a group  of  six  persons  of 
Florin,  the  Peace  Committee,  the  Methodist 
Preachers,  and  other  organizations  of  clergymen  in 
their  meetings,  and  a standing  committee  of  Oriental 
workers.  The  Los  Angeles  Graphic,  the  Los 

204 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


Angeles  Times,  the  San  Francisco  Chronicle,  the 
San  Francisco  Post,  the  Pasadena  News,  the  Fresno 
Republican,  and  the  California  Christian  Advo- 
cate were  prominent  among  the  comparatively  few 
newspapers  that  opposed  the  proposed  legislation. 
Intense  feeling  was  reported  as  existing  in  Japan, 
though  the  statement  seems  to  have  been  exagger- 
ated, and  the  Japanese  ambassador  at  Washington 
protested  to  the  federal  government  because  the 
proposed  legislation  was  discriminatory  against 
the  subjects  of  his  government  and  not  in  accord 
with  existing  treaty  provisions. 

After  IneffectuEil  Intervention  by  the  Federal 
Government,  a Law  was  Enacted.  — In  spite  of 
opposition  the  Assembly  bill  passed  and  the  bill  cor- 
responding closely  to  it  made  headway  in  the  Senate. 
When  (April  21)  the  Senate  bill  was  amended  so  as 
to  discriminate  against  corporations  a majority  of 
whose  stock  was  owned  by  Asiatics,  expressions  of 
preference  and  precautionary  advice  from  Washing- 
ton gave  way  to  protest.  Finally  Mr.  Bryan,  as  a 
personal  representative  of  the  President,  came  to 
Sacramento.  He  counseled  postponement,  but  if 
that  was  not  deemed  advisable,  he  urged  that  the 
legislation  should  not  be  of  a disciminatory  charac- 
ter. To  begin  with  the  governor’s  position  was 
not  known.  It  is  known,  however,  that  he  had 
not  taken  kindly  to  the  suggestion  that  the  pro- 
Japanese  report  made  by  the  Labor  Commissioner 
in  1910  should  be  published.  Upon  good  authority 
it  is  stated  that  for  some  time  the  Panama- Pacific 
Exposition  Committee  felt  assured  that  he  would 

205 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

use  his  influence  to  prevent  any  hostile  legislation. 
But  this  assurance  was  not  well  founded.  Rather 
did  he  make  clever  answer  to  Mr.  Bryan’s  remarks 
to  the  members  of  the  legislature.  After  several 
days  of  conference  and  personal  investigation, 
Mr.  Bryan  returned  to  Washington.  The  net 
effect  of  his  visit  was  to  add  to  the  determination 
to  enact  an  alien  land  law  and  to  cause  it  to  take 
such  guarded  shape  that  it  would  square  technically 
with  the  provisions  of  the  treaty  between  Japan 
and  the  United  States.  After  he  left,  a measure  — 
the  Heney-Webb  bill  — conferring  upon  aliens 
other  than  those  eligible  to  citizenship  only  such 
rights  of  real  property  as  were  accorded  in  existing 
treaties,  was  presented,  amended  so  as  to  permit 
leasing  of  agricultural  lands  for  periods  not  exceeding 
three  years,  and  quickly  passed  by  both  houses. 
Joint  resolutions  to  postpone  action  in  deference 
to  the  President’s  wishes  were  defeated  in  the 
Senate  by  a vote  of  lo  to  26,  in  the  Assembly  by  a 
vote  of  21  to  49.  Several  amendments  offered  in 
the  Senate,  one  of  them  to  forbid  leasing  after  the 
expiration  of  three  years,  were  voted  down.  So  was 
an  amendment  in  the  Assembly  to  make  the  laws 
equally  applicable  to  all  aliens.  The  disciminatory 
measure  was  passed  by  the  Senate  by  a vote  of  35 
to  2,  by  the  Assembly  by  a vote  of  72  to  3.  After 
waiting  from  the  2d  till  the  19th  of  May,  in  deference 
to  a request  made  by  Mr.  Bryan  for  an  opportunity 
to  present  the  position  of  the  Federal  Administra- 
tion, the  bill  was  signed  by  Governor  Johnson. 
With  this  the  scene  shifted  to  Washington,  where 

206 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


the  statute  became  the  subject  of  diplomatic  cor- 
respondence and  conferences  between  the  two  gov- 
ernments. 

The  Treaty  of  Commerce  contains  no  Provision 
relating  to  Landownership.  — Article  I of  the  Treaty 
of  Commerce  and  Navigation  and  Protocol  between 
Japan  and  the  United  States  of  February  21,  1911, 
reads  as  follows : 

“ The  subjects  or  citizens  of  each  of  the  high  con- 
tracting parties  shall  have  liberty  to  enter,  travel, 
and  reside  in  the  territories  of  the  other,  to  carry  on 
trade,  wholesale  and  retail,  to  own  or  lease  and  oc- 
cupy houses,  manufactories,  warehouses,  and  shops, 
to  employ  agents  of  their  choice,  to  lease  land  for 
residential  and  commercial  purposes,  and  generally 
to  do  anything  incident  to  or  necessary  for  trade, 
upon  the  same  terms  as  native  subjects  or  citizens, 
submitting  themselves  to  the  laws  and  regulations 
there  established.” 

Nowhere  does  the  treaty  say  anything  concerning 
the  purchase  and  ownership  of  land.  Indeed,  the 
omission  appears  to  have  been  due  to  the  desire 
of  the  Japanese  government  that  it  should  be  left 
to  be  dealt  with  by  legislative  enactment.^  The 
only  other  part  of  the  treaty  of  interest  here  is 
Article  XIV,  which  confers  as  good  terms  in  com- 
merce and  navigation  upon  the  other  contracting 
party  as  are  conferred  upon  the  subjects  or  citizens 
of  any  other  state. 

* So  stated  in  communication  of  the  Secretary  of  State  to  Viscount 
Chinda,  July  i6,  1913. 


207 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


The  Essentials  of  the  Alien  Land  Law.  — As 

already  stated,  advantage  was  taken  of  the  fact 
that  eastern  Asiatics  are  discriminated  against  by 
the  federal  government  in  granting  citizenship  by 
naturalization,  and  the  alien  land  law  of  1913,  except 
for  leaving  the  leasing  of  land  for  agricultural  pur- 
poses unchanged,  save  that  it  is  limited  to  three- 
year  periods,  deprived  those  aliens  not  eligible  to 
citizenship  of  the  rights  they  had  enjoyed  over  real 
property,  except  as  stipulated  in  existing  treaties. 
The  law  may  be  found  in  Appendix  B.  So  far  as 
Japanese  are  concerned,  it  provided  (i)  that  they 
may  lease  and  occupy  houses,  manufactories,  ware- 
houses, and  shops,  and,  without  restriction,  lease 
land  for  residential  and  commerical  purposes, 

(2)  that  they  may  lease  land  for  agricultural  pur- 
poses for  a term  not  exceeding  three  years,  and 

(3)  that  they  may  hold  land  now  owned  or  which 
they  may  own  in  satisfaction  of  existing  liens,  until 
death  or  sale,  but  that  upon  death  it  may  not  be 
succeeded  to  by  those  ineligible  to  citizenship, 
whereas,  until  the  enactment  of  this  law,  aliens 
and  citizens  enjoyed  the  same  rights  of  purchase, 
ownership,  and  lease  of  and  succession  to  real 
property.  Corporations  a majority  of  whose  stock 
is  owned  by  aliens  other  than  those  eligible  to  citi- 
zenship, are  placed  under  the  same  limitations  as 
natural  persons. 

This  not  the  First  Discriminatory  Land  Legisla- 
tion, but  the  First  to  deprive  Japanese  of  any  Sub- 
stantial Right.  — For  many  years  the  constitution 
of  the  state  of  Washington  had  prohibited  the  pur- 

208 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


chase  of  land  other  than  valuable  mineral  claims 
“ by  aliens,  other  than  those  who  in  good  faith  have 
declared  their  intention  to  become  citizens  of  the 
United  States.”  Idaho,  from  1899  until  1913, 
when  it  was  repealed,  had  a law  expressly  prohibit- 
ing ownership  of  land  by  aliens  ineligible  to  citizen- 
ship unless  acquired  by  foreclosure  or  similar  legal 
process,  when  under  penalty  of  escheating  to  the 
state,  it  was  to  be  disposed  of  within  five  years.^ 
A number  of  other  states  also  had  discriminated 
against  aliens  in  these  matters,  but'  in  all  of  these 
cases  the  legislation  had  not  been  adopted  to  dis- 
criminate against  Japanese.^  In  1912  Arizona 
enacted  a law  providing  that  “ no  person  not  eligi- 
ble to  become  a citizen  of  the  United  States  shall 
acquire  title  to  any  real  property  within  this  state,” 
except  to  satisfy  a lien,  when  it  must  be  disposed  of 
within  five  years ; and  limiting  leases  to  periods  of 
five  years  as  a maximum.^  But  the  California  law 
was  the  first  to  deprive  Japanese  subjects  of  any 
substantial  right  over  real  property  which  they  had 
enjoyed.  While  the  various  bills  were  pending 
in  the  legislature.  Viscount  Chinda  protested  to  the 
Secretary  of  State  and  the  President  against  dis- 
criminatory legislation.^  After  a bill  was  enacted 

1 Revised  Statutes,  sections  2609-2610.  Repealed  March  10, 
1913.  — Chapter  98  of  Session  Laws  of  1913. 

“ In  Idaho  the  law  was  adopted  to  discriminate  against  Chinese 
and  others  of  Mongolian  descent. 

® Chapter  71,  Laws  of  Arizona,  1912. 

* A summary  statement  prepared  by  the  Japanese  government 
presents  the  nature  of  the  correspondence  and  the  conferences  at 
Washington  very  well  and  is  deemed  of  sufficient  interest  to  incor- 
porate in  this  report  as  Appendix  C. 

P 209 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

and  both  before  and  after  its  approval  by  the  gover- 
nor, formal  protests  were  lodged  with  our  govern- 
ment. The  protests  alleged  that  the  legislation 
was  not  only  essentially  unfair  and  discriminatory, 
but  that  it  was  inconsistent  with  treaty  provisions 
and  was  also  opposed  to  the  spirit  and  fundamental 
principles  of  amity  and  good  understanding,  upon 
which  the  conventional  relations  of  the  two  nations 
depend.  It  was  alleged,  also,  that  there  was  noth- 
ing in  the  existing  situation  that  would  warrant  such 
legislation.  It  was  alleged,  further,  that  it  was 
unjust  and  contrary  to  the  treaty  provisions,  not 
only  in  depriving  Japanese  of  the  right  to  transmit 
to  their  legal  heirs  their  already  lawfully  secured 
landed  property,  but  in  several  other  respects. 
Finally,  attention  was  called  to  the  land  laws  of 
Japan.  “ The  laws  of  Japan  on  the  subjects  of 
alien  land  tenure,”  it  was  stated,  ” are  not  illiberal, 
but,  in  any  case,  they  contain  no  provisions  dis- 
criminating in  any  manner,  whatever,  against  the 
citizens  of  the  United  States.  On  the  contrary, 
in  all  that  relates  to  land  ownership,  as  well  as  in 
the  matter  of  all  other  civil  rights,  the  American 
citizens,  without  restrictions  and  without  conditions, 
are  accorded  in  Japan  full  and  complete  most 
favored  nation  treatment,  and  there  is  no  desire 
on  the  part  of  the  Japanese  administration  to 
modify  this  state  of  things.  What  Japan  claims 
is  nothing  more  than  fair  and  equal  treatment.”  ^ 

1 Telegram  from  His  Imperial  Majesty’s  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs  to  Viscount  Chinda,  August  23,  1913,  handed  to  Mr.  Bryan, 
August  26,  1913. 


210 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


It  becomes  Clear  that  our  Political  Organization 
is  not  well  fitted  for  Dealing  with  International 
Questions.  — To  these  allegations  it  was  replied 
that  the  act  in  question  should  not  be  interpreted 
as  an  unfriendly  one,  but  one  growing  out  of  certain 
economic  conditions  in  California,  rather  than  out 
of  race  feeling,  and  that  the  declared  intention  of 
the  law  was  to  respect  and  preserve  all  rights  under 
existing  treaties.  Moreover,  attention  was  called 
to  the  fact  that  if  the  intent  to  preserve  all  such 
rights  failed  of  accomplishment,  the  aggrieved 
parties  had  the  right  to  resort  to  the  federal  courts 
for  the  enforcement  of  their  rights.  There,  after 
many  months,  the  matter  stands.  Only  these 
things  are  clear:  (i)  that  the  Japanese  government 
looks  to  the  federal  government  to  prevent  dis- 
criminatory treatment  of  its  subjects,  and  (2)  that 
our  political  organization  is  a poor  one  for  dealing 
with  international  questions.  States  may  do  things 
of  serious  international  importance,  and  the  federal 
government  does  not  have  power  to  stay  their 
hands. 

In  the  Opinion  of  the  Writer,  the  Alien  Land 
Law  is  Unjust,  Impolitic,  and  Uimecessary. — Soon 
after  the  enactment  of  the  alien  land  law  in  Cali- 
fornia, the  writer  ventured  the  opinion  that  under 
the  circumstances  which  obtained,  it  was  unjust, 
impolitic,  and  unnecessary  legislation.^  Further 
investigation  has  convinced  him  of  the  correctness 
of  this  view.  Only  the  possibility  of  further  dis- 
cussion and  legislation  by  initiative  in  the  event  of  a 
1 In  an  article  in  The  Survey,  June  7,  1913. 

2II 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

failure  to  enact  a law  relating  to  the  matter,  would 
constitute  sufficient  reason  for  what  was  done. 

Why  the  Law  is  Unjust.  — Though  the  statute 
enacted  does  not  confiscate  property  now  owned, 
though  it  provides  that  the  heirs  shall  receive  the 
proceeds  from  the  sale  of  property  to  which  in  the 
absence  of  limitations  they  would  succeed,  and 
though  it  protects  existing  liens  on  real  estate,  it  is 
unjust  legislation.  It  is  unjust  because  it  takes 
advantage  of  discrimination  under  the  naturaliza- 
tion law  to  further  discriminate  between  aliens  of 
different  races  lawfully  in  this  country.  It  limits 
the  property  rights  of  those  who  must  remain 
aliens  and  safeguards  those  of  others  who  might, 
but  do  not,  become  citizens.  It  changes  the  law 
with  reference  to  the  ownership  of  the  soil  which  no 
doubt  furnished  a motive  for  some  to  immigrate. 
Moreover,  as  the  representatives  of  the  Japanese 
government  have  pointed  out  on  many  occasions, 
subjects  of  the  United  States  are  not  only  accorded 
the  same  property  rights  as  other  aliens  in  Japan, 
but  these  rights  are  extensive.  Though  aliens 
may  not  own  land  in  fee  simple  because  the  govern- 
ment has  not  as  yet  placed  in  effect  a law  passed 
by  the  Japanese  Parliament  in  1910  conferring 
that  right,  they  may  lease  land  for  such  long  periods 
and  under  such  conditions  that  the  difference  is  not 
great.^  Hence  the  California  law  is  not  reciprocal. 


^ See  communication  by  Mr.  Numano,  acting  consul  general  of 
Japan,  to  the  editor  of  the  Sacramento  Bee,  published  by  Dr.  Gulick, 
in  American- Japanese  Problem,  pp.  336-339,  for  a statement  covering 
the  entire  matter. 


212 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


It  must  be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  equal  rights 
conferred  by  law  may  not  be  equally  substantial  in 
fact,  and  such  is  the  case  here.  The  rights  of  real 
property  of  American  citizens  in  Japan  are  worth 
little  except  in  connection  with  property  used  for 
residential,  commercial,  and  business  purposes. 
There  is  no  immigration  from  the  United  States  to 
Japan  to  take  advantage  of  such  opportunities  as 
her  natural  resources  have  to  offer,  with  the  result 
that  reciprocal  laws  would  not  confer  equal  benefits. 
Nevertheless,  there  is  injustice  in  not  following 
Japan’s  principle  of  equal  treatment  of  aliens  — 
unless  it  can  be  shown  that  an  emergency  required 
deviation  from  that  principle. 

Why  the  Law  is  Impolitic.  — The  law  is  impolitic 
because  it  is  opposed  to  the  spirit  and  fundamental 
principles  of  amity  and  good  understanding,  upon 
which  the  conventional  relations  of  the  two  nations 
depend.  It  is  the  kind  of  legislation  that  retards 
and  interferes  with  commercial  relations,  and  no 
large  part  of  the  foreign  commerce  to  which  Cali- 
fornia is  a party  is  with  Japan.  The  development 
of  closer  commercial  relations  with  Japan  and  other 
eastern  Asiatic  countries  should  be  cherished,  not 
retarded  and  interfered  with.  Fortunately  Japan 
has  not  in  the  slightest  diminished  her  cooperation 
in  the  Panama-Pacific  Exposition,  but  such  legisla- 
tion cannot  be  of  assistance  in  further  enterprises 
of  that  kind.  Of  much  more  importance,  the  Japa- 
nese government,  in  spite  of  much  complaint  and 
criticism  at  home,  has  kept  faith  with  the  United 
States  in  the  administration  of  the  agreement 

213 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

relating  to  the  granting  of  passports  to  emigrants. 
Such  legislation  tends,  however,  to  bring  about  a 
situation  in  which  such  cooperation  cannot  be 
expected.  Finally,  investigation  makes  it  evident 
that  ownership  carries  with  it  the  closest  approach 
to  American  standards  and  the  best  opportunities 
for  assimilation.  With  ownership,  and  especially  of 
agricultural  land,  “ squatter  life  ” gives  way  to  the 
better  living  conditions  made  possible  only  by  a 
fixed  residence  and  property  interests.  Those  who 
own  land  develop  an  interest  in  their  property  and 
in  the  community  in  which  they  reside,  not  to  be 
expected  of  those  not  so  firmly  attached.  And, 
most  important,  the  effect  is  cumulative.  One 
good  farmer  who  has  an  interest  in  the  community 
and  who  wishes  to  become  thoroughly  American 
does  much  to  improve  the  ideals  and  life  and  to 
further  the  assimilation  of  his  countrymen.  Not 
the  least  sin  of  the  alien  land  law  is  that  it  removes 
this  positive  force  making  for  rapid  assimilation 
and  puts  in  its  stead  a feeling  of  resentment  which 
stands  in  the  way  of  the  development  of  the  best 
living  and  the  fullest  assimilation. 

With  the  Present  Restricted  Immigration,  the 
Law  was  Unnecessary.  — Had  we  an  unrestricted 
immigration  of  Japanese,  an  acute  situation  would 
undoubtedly  arise  in  connection  with  the  ownership 
of  the  soil.  It  cannot  be  disputed  that  with  large 
numbers  and  time,  many  agricultural  communities 
would  become  Japanese,  and  being  only  slightly 
affected  by  their  new  environment  in  cultural  ways, 
would  become  encysted  in  the  American  population. 

214 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


That  such  would  be  the  case  is  adequately  proved 
by  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  greatly  desire  owner- 
ship of  farm  lands  and  compete  for  them  on  the 
basis  of  a standard  which  makes  them  successful 
competitors.  With  large  numbers,  and  these  would 
be  realized  in  the  absence  of  restrictive  immigration 
legislation,  the  Japanese  would  gain  possession  of 
the  soil,  especially  in  California,  which  is  not  only 
easiest  of  access  but  most  attractive  to  them.  But 
the  fact  is  that  numbers  are  small,  and  unless  there 
is  a change  in  the  present  immigration  policy  will 
not  become  large.  The  high  wages  to  be  earned  now 
that  Japanese  laborers  have  a scarcity  value  and 
the  handicap  the  Japanese  are  under  in  securing 
farm  labor  tend  to  check  independent  farming  by 

them.  Though  in  the  absence  of  prohibition  more 
land  would  be  purchased  by  them  and  some  commu- 
nities would  undergo  a change  in  the  racial  composi- 
tion of  their  population  and  in  their  social  life,  noth- 
ing approaching  a real  problem  could  very  well  arise. 

There  was  no  Real  Problem  of  Land  Ownership 
by  Japanese  in  California  in  1913.  — There  was, 

then,  no  real  problem  connected  with  the  ownership 
of  farm  land  by  Japanese  in  California  in  1913.  In 
1912,  according  to  the  assessment  rolls  (for  March 
of  that  year)  they  owned  in  California  331  "farms 
with  an  acreage  of  12,726,  with  an  assessed  value 
(including  improvements)  of  $609,605.  They 
owned,  also,  the  insignificant  number  of  218  town 
lots,  with  an  assessed  value  of  $235,675.  The  total 
acreage  of  improved  farm  lands  in  California  is  in 
excess  of  11,000,000;  its  value,  according  to  the 

215 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Census  of  1910,  more  than  $1,300,000,000.  The 
totals  of  Japanese  holdings  and  values  were  in- 
significant. Moreover,  in  only  three  counties  of 
the  state  were  as  many  as  twenty  farms  owned  by 
them,  the  largest  number,  31,  being  found  in 
Fresno.  In  only  three  counties  did  their  combined 
holdings  aggregate  a thousand  acres.  In  Fresno 
County  they  owned  4,776  acres,  in  Tulare  County, 
1,053,  Merced,  1,049.  Finally,  it  may  be  noted 
that  the  acreage  owned  by  Japanese  increased 
during  the  three  years  1909  to  1912,  by  only 
i>935  acres,  that  is  from  10,791  to  12,726.^  Of 
course  a considerable  number  of  purchases  were 
made  in  1913  because  of  the  limitations  which  were 
imminent,  and  it  would  appear  that  there  were 
some  contracts  for  purchase  where  the  property 
had  not  been  transferred  and  was  still  assessed  in  the 
name  of  non- Japanese.  It  is  in  this  way,  no  doubt, 
that  the  figures  given  by  Japanese  authorities, 
always  somewhat  larger  than  those  obtained  from 
the  assessment  lists,  are  explained. 

But  there  was  Fear  of  what  might  Happen.  — But 
as  Mr.  Rowell  has  stated,  the  legislation  was  due 
not  so  much  to  what  had  happened  as  to  a fear  of 
the  future.  “ It  may  be  asserted  unconditionally,” 
he  writes,  ” that  the  menace  of  Japanese  ownership 
in  California  is  not  a present  fact,  but  is  a fear  of  the 
future.  . . . The  intense  interest  aroused  in  the 
whole  proposal  is  based  upon  this  imaginative 
picture  of  what  some  day  might  happen,  rather 

^ See  Report  of  the  (California)  Bureau  of  Labor  Statistics,  1911- 
1912,  pp.  633-636. 

216 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


than  upon  any  present  facts  of  what  has  happened. 
In  the  case  of  landholding,  — instead  of  dominat- 
ing anything,  the  J apanese  are  practically  a neglible 
quantity.  . . . These  figures  . . . are  relatively  insig- 
nificant in  a state  which  has  single  holdings  of 
millions  of  acres.  All  of  the  Japanese  farms  in 
California,  owned  or  leased,  could  be  located  on  the 
Miller  and  Lux  ranches  and  be  lost  in  the  shuffle.”  ^ 
Feeling  that  an  Immigration  Problem  actually 
Exists.  — My  investigations  show  that  there  is  a 
very  general  impression  among  well-informed  men 
in  labor  and  political,  and,  to  some  extent,  in  agricul- 
tural, circles,  that  the  agreement  with  Japan  has 
not  proved  to  be  as  restrictive  of  immigration  as  it 
has  in  fact  been  and  that  the  number  of  Japanese 
in  the  state  is  increasing  all  the  while.  With  time 
they  expect  to  see  numerous  communities  develop  a 
situation  like  that  at  Florin,  and  comparatively  few 
Californians  see  anything  good  in  that.  Some  of 
the  best-informed  and  most  honestly-minded  men 
in  the  legislature  of  1913  believed,  and  perhaps 
still  believe,  that  there  is  a present  Japanese  immi- 
gration problem  and  that  a land  problem  naturally 
follows.  Frequent  repetition  of  current  informa- 
tion and  misinformation,  the  impossibility  of  over- 
taking and  correcting  exaggerated  statements, 
and  what  is  believed  to  be  positive  misrepresenta- 
tion, have  combined  to  cause  honest,  intelligent,  and 
fair-minded  men  to  see  a menace  in  Japanese  land- 
ownership.  How  much  such  statements  as  that 
published  by  the  Asiatic  Exclusion  League  in 
^ In  the  California  Outlook,  April  26,  1913,  pp.  5-6. 

217 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

November,  1912,  have  influenced  men’s  minds,  it  is 
impossible  to  say.  The  statement  to  which  refer- 
ence is  made  affirmed  that  the  Japanese  owned  and 
controlled  fertile  land  in  California  equal  to  a strip 
five  miles  wide  the  entire  length  of  the  state,  and 
that  “ ten  years  from  now,  at  the  present  rate  of 
increase,  the  Japanese  will  be  in  absolute  possession 
of  the  agricultural  resources  of  the  State  of  Cali- 
fornia, and  the  white  farmer  will  be  in  the  same 
class  as  the  woolly  rhinoceros.”  ^ Of  course  such  a 
statement  is  so  absurd  that  intelligent  men  would 
not  be  directly  influenced  by  it.  Nevertheless, 
given  the  proper  atmosphere,  sweeping  assertions 
take  on  general  form  until  it  is  asserted  that  every- 
body knows  it  to  be  true  that  there  is  a real  menace 
in  the  near  future,  and  misrepresentation  has  its 
influence. 

Opposition  to  Ownership  of  Land  by  Japanese 
General  in  California.  — My  limited  investigations 
would  indicate  that  there  is  a very  general  opposi- 
tion in  California  to  the  ownership  of  farm  lands  by 
Japanese.  Of  course  there  are  many  who  are  very 
pronounced  in  their  opposition  to  the  present  law, 
and  many  others  regard  it  as  simply  unfortunate  and 
ill-advised  legislation,  but  a very  considerable  ma- 
jority uphold  it.  Whatever  the  motives  and  per- 
sonal opinions  of  the  members  of  the  legislature  may 
have  been,  in  casting  their  votes  as  they  did,  they 
represented  the  majority  of  voters. 

To  many  the  alien  land  bill  was  merely  an  anti- 
Japanese,  or,  possibly,  an  anti- Asiatic,  measure  and 

1 Bulletin  Asiatic  Exclusion  League,  November,  1912,  p.  267. 

218 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


appealed  to  them  as  such.  It  was  a way  of  giving 
vigorous  expression  to  their  feelings.  This  was 
an  important  element  in  the  situation.  But  in 
trade  union  circles  the  statement  was  frequently 
made  that  “ you  must  keep  after  them  all  the  time. 
Not  only  are  they  taking  the  land,  but  if  you  do  not 
keep  up  the  fight,  the  agreement  will  be  repudiated, 
or  not  carried  out,  the  bars  will  be  let  down  even 
lower  than  at  present,  and  a horde  of  cheap  laborers 
will  be  let  in.”  There  are  intelligent  men  who 
honestly  believe  that  an  immigration  problem  is 
involved.  Among  the  farmers  the  statement  was 
likely  to  be  in  substance  : “ See  how  they  come  into 
a community  and  monopolize  the  labor  and  drive 
other  laborers  out.  Next  they  lease  the  land  and 
they  then  begin  to  buy.  Other  farmers  then  want  to 
sell  and  sooner  or  later  the  community  becomes  J apa- 
nese.”  More  than  once,  in  support  of  this  position, 
was  attention  called  to  an  instance  like  that  cited 
by  a prominent  man,  formerly  state  senator  and 
now  a congressman-elect,  who  said  he  had  purchased, 
a few  years  ago,  a forty-acre  ranch  and  that  Japanese 
had  then  purchased  on  either  side  of  him,  with  the 
result  that  his  ranch  became  undesirable  for  white 
families  and  had  depreciated  in  value.  Some  large 
landowners  and  fruit  shippers  who  were  pronounced 
in  their  opposition  to  the  prohibition  of  leasing  by 
Asiatics  stated  that  they  favored  the  alien  land  act 
because  it  did  not  give  Asiatics  a firm  foothold  and  a 
permanent  position  in  the  community.  If  they 
secured  a permanent  position,  the  community 
would  become  Japanese.  The  thing  uppermost 

219 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

with  others,  however,  is  the  feeling  that  there 
should  not  be  economic  equality  between  the  races. 
They  feel  as  did  the  senator  who,  when  the  alien 
land  bill  was  under  consideration,  said  that  he  was 
quite  willing  Asiatics  should  do  the  hard  work  and 
harvest  the  crops,  but  that  if  he  had  his  way  they 
should  not  grow  them  as  independent  farmers. 
Inferior  men,  as  he  ranked  them,  should  occupy  an 
inferior  position. 

The  Latest  Anti- Japanese  Movement  has  as  its 
Object  the  Prohibition  of  Leasing  of  Agricultural 
Land.  — Thus  anti- Japanese  feeling  and  a felt 
economic  necessity  lend  support  to  the  alien  land 
law.  Unless  an  emergency  should  arise  or  the  law 
should  be  held  to  be  unconstitutional,  it  will  remain 
upon  the  statute  books,  at  least  for  the  present. 
Whether  it  will  be  amended  so  as  to  prohibit  the 
leasing  of  agricultural  lands  is  the  question  now 
raised  in  the  latest  anti-Japanese  movement. 

It  will  be  recalled  that  the  Sandford  bill,  which 
“ died  ” in  the  legislature  in  1911,  absolutely  pro- 
hibited the  leasing  of  land  by  aliens  ineligible  to 
citizenship.  So  did  some  of  the  measures  con- 
sidered in  1913,  but  the  Heney-Webb  bill,  limiting 
narrowly  the  rights  of  such  aliens  to  those  conferred 
by  existing  treaties  when  reported,  was  amended 
so  as  to  permit  the  leasing  of  land  for  agricultural 
purposes  for  periods  not  exceeding  three  years. 
This  limitation  to  three  years  is  proving  to  be  a 
serious  limitation  on  leasing  in  some  localities, 
where  the  growing  of  strawberries  and  certain  other 
crops  calls  for  the  use  of  the  land  for  four,  five,  six, 

220 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


and,  in  the  case  of  asparagus,  for  ten  years.  Yet 
organized  labor  maintains  that  the  leasing  clause, 
without  which  leasing  of  agricultural  lands  by 
Asiatics  would  have  been  unlawful,  was  “ slipped 
in  ” when  the  bill  was  hurriedly  enacted.  Organ- 
ized labor  and  the  Anti-Jap  Laundry  League  of 
San  Francisco  have  inaugurated  a movement  to 
amend  the  law  so  as  to  deprive  aliens  ineligible  to 
citizenship  of  this  limited  right  to  become  tenant 
farmers. 

Candidates  for  Office  Questioned.  — Under  date 
of  July  20,  1914,  “ the  Legislative  Conference,  rep- 
resenting the  California  State  Federation  of  Labor, 
the  State  Building  Trades  Council  of  California,  and 
the  Affiliated  Central  Councils  and  Local  Unions 
throughout  California  ” submitted  numerous  ques- 
tions to  all  candidates  for  nomination  at  the  primary 
election  for  legislative  office,  and  requested  that 
these  candidates  should  state  their  position  with 
regard  to  them.  Among  the  ten  questions  asked 
of  candidates  for  the  office  of  congressman  or  sena- 
tor was  “ Do  you  favor  an  extension  of  the  Chinese 
Exclusion  Act  so  as  to  bar  all  Asiatics?  ” Number 
“ 9 ” among  the  twelve  questions  submitted  to 
candidates  for  the  state  legislature  reads:  "Do 
you  favor  amending  the  alien  land  law  by  eliminat- 
ing the  leasing  clause?”  These  questions  were 
submitted  also  by  the  Anti-Jap  Laundry  League 
to  all  candidates  for  office  in  San  Francisco.  Al- 
most exactly  one  half  of  the  candidates  for  the 
legislature  answered  the  question  relating  to  leasing 
and  almost  all  of  them  in  the  affirmative.  Most 


221 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

of  those  who  were  opposed  to  such  legislation, 
and  no  doubt  some  others,  failed  to  reply.  Like- 
wise, nearly  all  of  those  who  replied  to  the  questions 
submitted  by  the  Laundry  League  favored  the 
discriminating  legislation  to  which  the  questions 
related.  Only  here  and  there  did  a candidate  an- 
swer in  the  negative.  The  questions  show  the 
attitude  of  organized  labor ; their  submission  has 
resulted  in  pledges  by  many  of  those  who  have  been 
elected  members  of  the  legislature,  soon  to  convene, 
to  support  an  “ anti-leasing  ” bill. 

Labor  Leaders  favor  an  Anti-leasing  Measure. 
— Conferences  with  leaders  in  trade  union  circles 
revealed  the  fact  that  a further  limitation  of  the 
kind  proposed  finds  all  but  unanimous  support 
among  them,  and  for  the  same  reasons  that  the 
present  prohibition  of  landownership  finds  favor. 
It  is  anti- Japanese  and  affords  them  an  opportu- 
nity to  record  their  feelings  and  to  safeguard  the 
country  against  an  immigration  problem  to  develop 
at  almost  any  time,  if  not  already  present.  They 
hope,  also,  that  the  prohibition  of  leasing  will 
discourage  immigration  from  other  states  to  Cali- 
fornia, will  cause  some  Japanese  to  return  to  their 
native  land,  and  will  discourage  the  immigration 
of  wives  and  prevent  the  appearance  of  a large 
native  Japanese  population. 

Opinions  in  Farming  Communities  Vary.  — In 
the  farming  communities,  the  small  ranchers  who 
do  their  own  work  and  a considerable  number  of 
others,  though  less  pronounced  in  their  views,  are 
of  the  same  opinion  as  the  trade  union  leaders. 

222 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


Some  of  these  men  are  prominent  and  of  excellent 
standing  in  the  communities  where  they  live,  and  a 
few  of  them  are  well  known  throughout  the  state, 
if  not  beyond  its  confines.  They  object  to  the 
development  of  tenant  farming,  assert  that  leasing 
by  Japanese  tends  to  prevent  subdivision  of  large 
holdings  and  settlement  by  families  who  would  do 
most  of  their  own  work,  and  in  this  and  in  other 
ways  keeps  down  the  influx  of  white  families,  and 
maintain  that  the  effect  upon  the  community  life 
of  a large  settled  Japanese  population  is  bad. 
But  in  farming  communities  opinion  is  very  much 
divided  so  far  as  any  existed  at  the  time  of  my 
visits  (in  July  and  August)  and  it  would  appear  that 
any  further  discriminatory  legislation  against  the 
tenure  of  land  by  Japanese  would  result  largely 
from  the  political  activity  of  organized  labor.  In 
fact  it  is  scarcely  fair  to  say  that  opinion  is  very 
much  divided,  for  a great  many  of  those  who  favor 
prohibition  of  ownership,  oppose  prohibition  of 
leasing  by  Asiatics,  and  it  would  appear  that  the 
proponents  of  the  new  measure  are  in  the  minority. 
Many  who  favor  the  present  land  law  say  that 
prohibition  of  leasing  would  “ carry  it  too  far.” 
Business  men  and  others  who  oppose  the  present 
land  law  are  of  course  opposed  to  its  amendment 
so  as  to  make  it  still  more  restrictive.  Large 
landholders  and  fruit  and  produce  shippers  very 
generally  maintain  that  leasing  is  desirable.  Much 
of  it  is  a convenient  way  of  arranging  for  needed 
labor;  it  is  generally  agreed  that  the  Japanese 
tenants  not  only  pay  the  largest  rents,  but  are  good 

223 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

orchardists  and  farmers  and  better  tenants  than  the 
white  men  seeking  land  to  lease;  and  the  point  is 
made  that  in  many  cases  tenant  farming  by  Asiatics 
is  incidental  to  developing  ranches  from  reclaimed 
land,  or  orchards  or  vineyards  from  waste  or  “ hay 
land,”  and  that  where  this  is  true,  the  tenants’ 
contribution  to  the  physical  development  of  the 
community  is  an  important  one.  Needless  to  say 
this  is  quite  true.  One  needs  only  to  note  the 
development  of  the  thousands  of  acres  of  reclaimed 
land  along  the  Sacramento  and  San  Joaquin  rivers, 
and  the  gradual  expansion  of  orchards  at  Watson- 
ville and  of  vineyards  at  Florin  with  incidental 
strawberry  growing  by  Japanese,  to  appreciate  the 
contribution  to  California  agricultural  develop- 
ment by  Asiatic  tenant  farmers  that  has  been  made. 
There  is  still  much  land  it  would  be  well  to  develop 
in  the  same  way. 

Little  to  be  said  for  and  Much  against  a Prohibi- 
tion of  Leasing.  — Though  tenant  farming  causes 
a large  number  of  Japanese  to  settle  in  a restricted 
area  and  this  presents  its  problems,  though  the 
Asiatics  generally  pay  higher  rents  than  other 
would-be  tenants  and  compete  upon  an  undesirable 
plane,  though  their  farming  tends  to  prevent  rapid 
progress  in  the  subdivision  of  large  tracts  now 
farmed  to  be  settled  and  cultivated  by  the  owner 
and  his  family,  little  more  can  be  said  in  favor  of 
a prohibition  of  leasing.  Much  ought  to  be  said 
against  it.  To  prohibit  leasing  by  Asiatics  would 
be  regarded  as  an  unfriendly  act  and  would  be  far 
more  impolitic  than  the  enactment  of  the  present 

224 


ALIEN  LAND  LEGISLATION  IN  CALIFORNIA 


law  has  proved  to  be.  It  would  be  extremely  unjust. 
It  would  deprive  several  thousand  of  a substantial 
right  they  have  already  availed  themselves  of  in 
leasing  many  thousands  of  acres  and  a right  which 
American  subjects  would  have  in  Japan  if  they 
wished  to  exercise  it.  A majority  of  the  tenant 
farmers  have  equipped  themselves  with  work 
animals,  tools,  and  machinery  which  would  be 
worth  little  to  them  if  they  could  neither  buy  nor 
lease  land.  A majority  of  them  have  their  wives 
and  children  here.  One  object  in  leasing  is  to 
provide  them  with  a home.  Were  leasing  now 
prohibited,  they  would  be  under  the  necessity  of 
going  to  other  states,  returning  to  Japan,  immigrat- 
ing to  the  cities,  or  becoming  a part  of  the  more  or 
less  migratory  labor  supply.  Perhaps  they  would 
most  frequently  accept  the  third  of  these  alterna- 
tives. If  they  did,  it  would  be  to  fit  square  pegs 
into  round  holes,  to  cause  greater  competition 
between  small  shops  in  the  laundry  and  other 
trades,  and  to  place  a premium  on  “ poor  living  ” 
in  the  towns  and  cities.  If  they  reverted  to  the 
earlier  position  of  agricultural  laborers,  it  would 
be  cruel  in  many  cases  to  wives  and  children. 
Moreover,  most  of  ^he  good  in  the  social  life  of  the 
Japanese  in  the  agricultural  communities  has  come 
with  the  wives  and  children  who  have  helped  to  form 
a settled  population.  The  prohibition  of  leasing 
would  not  only  stand  in  the  way  of  the  assimilation 
of  the  Japanese  who  are  here,  but  would  prove  to  be 
demoralizing  to  them. 

Thus,  while  investigation  would  lead  one  at 
Q 225 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

least  not  to  inveigh  strongly  against  the  motives  of 
most  of  those  who  favor  alien  land  legislation,  and 
to  recognize  that  farming  by  Asiatics  has  brought 
with  it  its  problems,  the  discriminatory  legislation, 
actual  and  proposed,  is  to  be  deplored.  The  present 
prohibition  of  land  ownership  is  unjust,  impolitic, 
and,  with  a restricted  immigration,  unnecessary. 
The  proposed  prohibition  of  leasing  would  be  still 
worse.  It  is  more  unjust,  more  impolitic,  and  more 
objectionable  on  social  grounds  than  prohibition  of 
ownership,  and  on  the  plea  of  necessity  has  still 
slighter  excuse. 


226 


CHAPTER  IX 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS  AND  THE  WESTERN 

MIND 

Many  Measures  discriminating  against  Japanese 
have  been  presented  to  Legislatures.  — Alien  land 
legislation  is  only  a part  of  the  discriminatory  meas- 
ures which  have  been  proposed  against  Japanese, 
most  of  them  in  California.  For  ten  years  or  more 
numerous  bills  of  a discriminatory  character  have 
been  presented  in  the  legislature  at  Sacramento. 
In  1913  no  fewer  than  thirty-four  were  introduced. 
In  addition  to  those  relating  to  land  tenure,  were 
bills  increasing  the  license  fee  of  Japanese  fisher- 
men, providing  for  the  segregation  of  Asiatic  school 
children,  prohibiting  the  issuance  of  liquor  licenses 
to  Japanese,  forbidding  the  use  of  power  engines 
by  them,  providing  for  the  imposition  of  a special 
poll  tax  upon  them,  and  prohibiting  the  employ- 
ment of  white  women  by  Asiatics.  Discriminatory 
measures,  though  far  less  numerous,  have  been 
introduced  in  the  legislatures  of  some  of  the  other 
western  states  also.  Thus  in  Montana  a school 
segregation  bill  was  introduced  some  years  ago  but 
it  was  unfavorably  reported  by  the  committee  on 
military  affairs.  During  the  session  of  1909  of  the 
Nevada  legislature  strong  anti-Japanese  resolutions 
commending  the  Japanese  land  bill  and  the  school 

227 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

segregation  bill  then  pending  in  the  California 
legislature  were  adopted  by  the  lower  house,  but 
were  defeated  in  the  senate  as  a result  of  influence 
brought  to  bear  from  Washington  through  the 
United  States  senators  from  Nevadad 

Likewise  in  City  Councils.  — Corresponding  to 
these  have  been  discriminatory  ordinances  in  city 
councils  and  other  legislative  bodies.  Reference 
need  be  made  only  to  the  school  segregation  order 
of  the  San  Francisco  School  Board  in  1906  and  the 
refusal,  until  recently,  on  the  part  of  the  Board  of 
Supervisors  of  that  city  to  grant  Japanese  the  per- 
mits necessary  to  operate  steam  laundries. 

Most  of  them  not  aimed  at  Real  Problems.  — 
Some  of  these  measures  were  designed  to  deal  with 
real  problems,  but  most  of  them  have  had  even  less 
reason  than  the  California  alien  land  law  of  1913. 
They  were  more  than  anything  else  anti- Japanese, 
just  as  a great  deal  of  legislation  of  a few  decades 
ago  was  anti-Chinese. 

Also  much  Discrimination  of  an  Unofficial  Char- 
acter. — Along  with  the  numerous  attempts  at 
discrimination  in  the  law  much  discrimination  of 
an  unofficial  character  has  been  practiced.  Refer- 
ence has  been  made  to  the  fairly  general  discrimina- 
tion against  Japanese  practiced  by  white  barbers 
in  the  cities  of  the  Pacific  Coast.  Many  “ middle 
price  ” restaurants,  lodging  houses,  and  hotels  have, 
also,  discriminated  against  them.  Here  and  there 
they  are  denied  admission  to  moving  picture 
shows  or  are  assigned  to  special  and  the  less  desir- 
^ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  172. 

228 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


able  seats.  One  theater  in  Portland  and  two  in 
San  Francisco  admit  them  only  to  the  galleries. 
In  a few  instances,  such  as  those  mentioned  by 
Mr.  Kawakami  in  his  interesting  book,  Asia  at  the 
Door,  they  have  been  and  are  discriminated  against 
even  by  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  But  it  is  unnecessary  to 
mention  more  details  of  this  character.  Rather 
should  it  be  pointed  out,  in  order  to  prevent  mis- 
understanding, that  in  many  places  there  is  little 
or  no  discrimination  or  active  opposition.  There 
is  less  of  both  now  than  there  was  five  years  ago. 
But  while  there  are  instances  of  active  cooperation 
between  the  races,  the  Japanese  are  not  given  a 
normal  place  in  the  community,  and  discrimination 
is  widespread.  There  is  in  most  places  a strong 
tendency  to  limit  association  with  them  to  business 
relations. 

Why  an  Anti- Japanese  Feeling? — In  so  far  as 
this  discriminatory  treatment  is  not  due  to  real 
problems,  in  so  far  as  it  is  due  to  anti -Japanese 
feeling,  it  raises  the  question.  Why  should  such 
feeling  exist?  Why  is  the  line  drawn  against  the 
members  of  this  race  in  so  many  instances  ? Before 
attempting  to  answer  this  question,  however,  it  will 
be  well  to  present  a few  details  relating  to  the 
character  of  the  Japanese. 

The  Japanese  have  Merit.  — That  the  Japanese 
are  intelligent,  studious,  cleanly  in  their  habits, 
generous,  temperate,  moral,  law-abiding,  industrious, 
and  ambitious  cannot  be  denied.  Some  of  these 
things  have  been  noted  in  the  preceding  pages. 
Others  should  be  commented  on  briefly  in  order  to 

229 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

show  what  the  Japanese  problem  is  not  and  to  get 
a basis  for  discussing  other  things  to  be  considered 
in  this  report. 

They  are  well  Educated. — Japan  has  good 
schools  and  a relatively  low  percentage  of  illiter- 
ates. Though  some  of  those  who  came  to  the  con- 
tinent from  Hawaii  had  been  drawn  from  the 
stratum  of  the  population  with  the  fewest  advan- 
tages in  their  native  land,  in  the  matter  of  schooling 
and  literacy  the  Japanese,  taken  as  a whole,  com- 
pare favorably  with  immigrants  from  Europe  and 
are  vastly  superior  to  the  Chinese  and  the  Mexicans. 
Most  of  them  before  immigrating  had  completed 
the  grades  corresponding  to  those  of  our  common 
schools,  many  of  them  had  completed  a high 
school  course,  and  not  a few  had  graduated  from 
colleges,  while  a large  percentage  of  them  have  had 
some  schooling  in  the  United  States.  As  would  be 
expected,  more  than  nine  in  ten  read  and  write 
their  native  language,  and  a very  considerable 
percentage  of  them  can  now  read  and  write  English 
also.  A few  data  drawn  from  the  Census  and  from 
the  investigations  made  by  the  Immigration  Com- 
mission may  be  presented  to  show  how  the  Japa- 
nese compare  with  other  races  in  the  United  States 
in  these  respects. 

Comparative  Statistics  Relating  to  Literacy.  — 

According  to  the  Census  for  1910,  the  percentage  of 
illiterates  among  Japanese  ten  years  of  age  and 
over  was  9.2  ; the  corresponding  figures  for  the 
Chinese,  foreign-born  whites,  and  native  whites 
were  respectively,  15.8,  12.7,  and  3.0.  Though  it 

230 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


had  been  influenced  by  the  restrictions  upon  immi- 
gration, the  percentage  of  illiterate  Japanese  (9.2) 
was  only  slightly  larger  than  that  (7.7)  of  all  races 
in  the  population  combined.  Comparisons  with 
different  races  of  immigrants  from  Europe  and 
Mexico  would  be  of  interest,  but  the  general  volumes 
of  the  Census  have  not  made  this  possible.  From 
the  reports  of  the  Immigration  Commission  it  is 
possible,  however,  to  make  some  interesting  com- 
parisons of  races  engaged  in  the  same  branches  of 
employment.  Thus,  in  maintenance  of  way  on  the 
steam  railroads,  the  following  percentages  of  liter- 
ates were  found  for  races  employed  in  large  num- 
bers: Japanese,  98.4;  North  Italians,  82.9; 
Greeks,  82.5 ; South  Italians,  67.3 ; Mexicans, 
43.9.  Corresponding  percentages  for  those  em- 
ployed in  the  mining  of  coal  and  manufacture  of 
coke  in  the  West  were  : Finns,  100  ; English,  98.8  ; 
Germans,  98.1;  Japanese,  96.3;  North  Italians, 
92.8 ; Slovenians,  90.6 ; Croatians,  85.7 ; Poles, 
85.3;  Montenegrins,  84.9;  Slovaks,  84.1;  South 
Italians,  70.0.  Further  detail  need  not  be  pre- 
sented. After  considering  such  figures  as  these 
the  Immigration  Commission  reported : “ It  is 

evident  from  the  preceding  discussion  that  the 
standard  of  literacy  shown  by  the  Japanese  ...  is 
far  higher  than  that  shown  by  the  Chinese,  the 
Mexicans,  and  most  of  the  South  and  East  European 
races,  if  comparison  is  limited  to  those  who  are 
employed  in  the  same  industries  and  at  the  same 
kind  of  work.”  ^ 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  151. 

231 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Japanese  Eager  to  learn  English.  — That,  taken 
as  a whole,  the  Japanese  are  studious  every  one 
knows.  It  is  shown  by  the  large  percentage  who 
study  in  the  “ camps  ” and  by  the  large  number  of 
schools  conducted  by  Japanese  missions  and  other 
organizations  for  adult  Japanese.  After  comment- 
ing on  the  number  of  schools  of  this  type  in  differ- 
ent Western  cities,  the  Immigration  Commission 
states : 

“ In  fact,  in  all  cities  of  the  West  with  more 
than  a few  hundred  Japanese  there  are  schools,  the 
primary  object  of  which  is  to  teach  adult  Japanese 
the  English  language.  The  number  of  these  in- 
stitutions and  the  many  Japanese  immigrants  who 
attended  them  at  an  earlier  time  when  many  immi- 
grants were  arriving  are  the  best  evidence  of  the 
ambition  and  eagerness  of  the  members  of  this  race 
to  learn  western  civilization.  No  adult  immigrants 
in  the  West,  unless  it  is  the  Hebrews,  show  as  great 
desire  to  learn  the  English  language.”^ 

They  have  a High  Standard  of  Personal  Cleanli- 
ness.— Though  there  is  room  for  much  improvement 
in  the  care  of  houses  and  camps  occupied  by  Japa- 
nese, the  members  of  this  race  are  less  open  to  criti- 
cism than  several  of  the  European  races  similarly 
circumstanced.  A roadmaster  told  the  writer  a few 
years  ago  that  all  of  the  Japanese  section  hands 
on  his  division  had  been  discharged  because  they 
were  not  satisfied  with  the  bunk  cars  with  which 
they  were  provided.  Greeks  had  been  substituted 


1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  153. 

232 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


for  them  and  were  satisfied  with  their  quarters. 
“ The  Japanese,”  he  said,  ” are  too  particular.” 
Recently  I was  told  by  an  anti- Japanese  labor 
unionist  that  one  of  the  ” camps  ” not  far  away 
was  Japanese.  Inquiry  as  to  the  number  employed 
there  and  other  details  elicited  only  the  statement 
that  she  knew  only  that  the  ” camp  ” was  Japanese 
because  it  was  so  much  cleaner  than  those  occupied 
by  Italians  and  Greeks,  who  were  employed  in  large 
numbers  in  that  particular  locality.  In  their 
persons  and  dress  they  are  especially  careful  in 
this  matter.  One  seldom  finds  a ” camp  ” or  a 
” shack  ” too  rude  in  its  equipment  to  be  without 
bathing  facilities.  The  day’s  work  is  usually  fol- 
lowed by  a hot  bath. 

Are  Generous  in  their  Relations  with  Others.  — 

The  Japanese  are  very  ” personal  ” in  their  rela- 
tions, and  are  frequently  generous  to  a fault  in 
showing  their  appreciation  of  others.  They  fre- 
quently spend  on  entertainment  and  in  making 
gifts  money  badly  needed  for  other  things. 

Are  generally  Temperate.  — As  the  Immigra- 
tion Commission  observed:  ” The  Japanese  as  a 
race  are  temperate.  Though  there  is  much  drinking 
at  restaurants  and  in  ‘ camps,’  instances  are  rare 
in  which  drunkenness  has  interfered  with  their 
efficiency  in  any  branch  of  employment.”  ^ In 
their  superiority  in  this  matter  is  found  one  reason 
for  their  preference  by  roadmasters  over  the  South 
European  immigrants  who  have  shared  mainte- 
nance of  way  work  with  them.  Of  the  various 
1 Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  166. 

233 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

places  investigated,  the  largest  number  of  Japanese 
saloons  and  drinking  places  was  noted  in  Los 
Angeles,  but  about  them  not  one  drunken  Japanese 
was  seen. 

Have  fought  the  Evil  of  Prostitution.  — Their 
record  in  the  matter  of  prostitution  has  not  been 
so  good.  In  different  places  prostitution  has,  in 
fact,  been  a problem.  Until  recently  advantage 
was  taken  of  the  admission  of  “ picture  brides  ” 
to  bring  into  this  country  women  to  be  used  for 
immoral  purposes.  It  can  be  said  truthfully, 
however,  that  the  Japanese  have  never  compared 
unfavorably  with  other  races  similarly  circum- 
stanced in  that  most  of  the  men  were  leading  the 
lives  of  single  men  in  a foreign  country,  and  that 
the  evil  among  them  has  never  been  as  great  as 
among  certain  other  races,  as,  for  example,  the 
Chinese  and  the  Greeks.  It  can  be  said,  also,  that 
an  equal  organized  effort  to  end  it  all  has  not  been 
witnessed  in  the  case  of  any  other  race.  The 
Japanese  associations  in  Fresno  and  various  other 
places  have  fought  the  evil  with  much  success  and 
frequently  without  more  than  a reluctant  coopera- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  police  and  courts.  The 
abuse  of  the  privilege  of  bringing  in  “ picture 
brides  ” has  been  practically  ended  by  the  earnest 
cooperation  of  the  Japanese  government  through 
its  consular  representatives.  Each  case  is  carefully 
investigated  in  advance  and  every  effort  is  made  to 
see  that  no  imposition  is  practiced. 

Are  Law-abiding.  — That  the  members  of  this 
race  are  generally  law-abiding  must  be  admitted. 

234 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 

Of  course  a few  crimes  of  a serious  nature  have 
been  committed,  but  blackmail,  the  black  hand,  and 
the  like  have  been  conspicuously  absent.  Arrests 
for  theft  are  strikingly  few.  Being  temperate, 
industrious,  and  not  given  to  theft,  the  number  of 
arrests  and  convictions  has  everywhere  been  very 
favorable  to  the  members  of  this  race.  No  doubt 
the  figures  are  somewhat  more  favorable  than  they 
should  be,  for  as  a general  rule  the  police  pay  less 
attention  to  misdemeanors  and  minor  crimes  in  the 
Asiatic  quarters  than  elsewhere  just  so  long  as 
others  are  not  disturbed.  Yet  the  facts  relating 
to  the  observance  of  law  and  the  maintenance  of 
order  are  distinctly  favorable  to  the  Japanese  as 
against  most  other  immigrant  races  and  the  native 
born.  As  the  Immigration  Commission  reported : 

“ With  regard  to  criminal  acts,  the  record  of  the 
Japanese  immigrants  is  very  good.  For  example, 
in  San  Francisco  from  1900  to  1907  less  than  100 
Japanese  were  reported  among  the  commitments,  a 
remarkably  small  number,  if  the  size  of  the  Japanese 
population  of  that  city  and  the  number  of  Greeks, 
Italians,  and  others  committed  are  considered.” 

Gambling  the  Worst  Evil  among  the  Japanese  ; 
the  Situation  calls  for  Vigorous  Action.  — The 

worst  evil  among  the  Japanese  in  the  cities  and 
towns  is  gambling.  They  are  frequently  guilty  of 
this  misdemeanor,  and  the  efforts  of  the  Japanese 
associations  and  other  organizations  have  been 
successful  only  in  limiting  it  to  some  extent.  The 
situation  is  not  as  bad  as  it  was  some  years  ago, 

235 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

when,  as  Mr.  Kawakami  says,  the  Chinese  gambling 
dens  levied  from  the  Japanese  a toll  of  several 
million  dollars  every  year.  Such  improvement  as 
has  been  made  has  been  due  to  the  organized 
effort  of  the  Japanese  to  rid  their  communities  of 
agents  of  Chinese  gambling  houses  and  to  bring 
about  a separation  of  their  quarter  from  that  of  the 
Chinese.  Where,  as  in  Sacramento,  this  separa- 
tion has  been  effected,  the  evil  has  been  reduced  to 
much  smaller  proportions.  Where  it  has  not  been 
effected,  gambling  is  still  a distinct  evil.  It  is  not 
too  much  to  say  that  gambling  is  the  most  important 
business  followed  by  the  Chinese  in  the  majority 
of  the  towns  and  cities  in  the  West  with  an  Oriental 
population,  and  that  their  victims  are  largely 
Japanese.  The  blame  lies  chiefly,  however,  with 
the  incompetent  public  officials  who  permit  such 
evils  to  continue  just  “ so  long  as  the  Orientals 
gamble  among  themselves.”  In  Portland  I am 
reliably  informed  that  of  some  thirty  Chinese  shops 
in  two  blocks  of  the  new  part  of  the  partially  re- 
located Chinese  quarter,  gambling  is  the  main 
business  of  all  but  one.  The  ” business  ” presumed 
to  be  carried  on  by  the  others  is  a mere  cloak  for 
the  games  conducted.  From  personal  knowledge 
it  can  be  said  that  Walnut  Grove,  Isleton,  and  several 
other  small  villages  in  California  are  plague  spots 
in  which  many  Chinese  are  living  without  honest 
effort  and  at  the  expense  of  the  Japanese.  The 
indifference  and  general  failure  of  the  local  govern- 
ments to  deal  with  Chinese  gambling  houses  and  the 
extent  of  the  evil  warrant  action  by  the  federal 

236 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


government  if  it  can  find  an  adequate  method 
which  will  be  legal.  If  it  could  convict  and  then 
deport  a considerable  number  of  Chinese  gamblers, 
it  would  be  a great  moral  gain  and  accomplish 
more  for  the  improvement  of  the  Japanese  than 
any  other  one  thing.  At  almost  every  place  the 
writer  has  visited,  consular  officers,  secretaries  of 
Japanese  associations,  missionaries,  and  others 
interested  in  the  welfare  and  conversant  with  the 
life  of  the  Japanese,  have  asked,  “ Cannot  some- 
thing be  done  to  meet  this  evil?”  It  calls  for 
effective  action. 

They  present  no  Problem  of  Dependency.  — 

Not  only  are  the  Japanese  industrious;  they  are 
well  organized  to  care  for  those  who  are  unfortunate 
enough  to  be  in  need  of  assistance,  so  that  few  have 
become  dependent  upon  the  public.  They  have 
brought  with  them  no  problem  of  dependency  and 
the  number  of  insane  has  been  small. 

An  Immigration  Commission  Summary.  — After 
examining  the  details  relating  to  such  matters  as 
these,  the  Immigration  Commission  presented  this 
summary  statement : 

“ Thus  the  Japanese  have  a comparatively  small 
percentage  of  illiterates  among  them,  are  intelligent 
and  eager  to  learn  of  American  institutions,  make  a 
fairly  rapid  progress  in  learning  to  speak  English, 
and  usually  good  progress  in  learning  to  read  and 
write  it.  They  have  not  proved  to  be  burdensome 
to  the  community  because  of  pauperism  or  crime.” 

In  such  matters  as  have  been  commented  on,  no 
one  can  find  support  for  the  contention  that  the 

237 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Japanese  are  undesirable.  They  must  command 
respect. 

But  the  Japanese  not  much  Criticized  for  Defi- 
ciencies of  Character.  -—It  may  be  said,  however, 
that  the  J apanese  have  not  been  very  much  criticized 
for  any  deficiencies  of  this  nature.  It  is  true  that 
they  have  been  misrepresented  in  these  respects  by 
some  opposed  to  them.  Yet  the  chances  are  nine 
in  ten  that  no  incorrect  criticism  of  such  a nature 
will  be  made  by  those  who  maintain  that  the 
Japanese  are  undesirable  when  explaining  why  they 
think  so.  The  reasons  for  the  opposition  and  wide- 
spread discrimination  are  of  a different  character. 

Reasons  given  for  Discrimination  Vary. — In 
passing  from  these  considerations  to  the  question 
as  to  why  there  has  been  and  is  widespread,  though, 
be  it  noted,  not  universal  discrimination  against 
and  opposition  to  the  Japanese  in  the  West,  and 
more  especially  in  California,  one  begins  to  tread 
on  less  sure  ground.  Perhaps  no  two  would  agree 
in  their  answers  to  the  question.  One  of  the  most 
interesting  facts  is  that  the  details  entering  into 
the  answers  given  by  different  persons  differ,  and 
the  emphasis  placed  upon  these  details  differs  still 
more.  And  the  differences  in  the  answers  are  as 
significant  as  they  are  interesting. 

Character  of  the  Western  People  an  Important 
Factor. — A fact  to  be  placed  in  the  foreground  is  that, 
considered  as  a whole,  the  people  of  the  West  are 
impulsive,  frank,  independent,  and  quick  to  react 
when  cause  is  given.  Nothing  regarded  as  an 
evil  is  taken  for  granted.  There  is  no  obstacle 

238 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


too  big  to  be  overcome.  A large  percentage  of 
the  population  is  of  men  attracted  by  the  frontier ; 
many  more  have  descended  from  them.  Califor- 
nia still  shows  traces  of  the  days  of  ’49.  It  is  only 
a few  decades  since  ambitious  and  restless  men 
rushed  there  from  many  parts  of  the  world.  Much 
that  is  interesting  in  the  history  of  the  state  is 
colored  by  that  fact.  In  explaining  the  widespread 
opposition  to  Japanese  we  have  to  explain  how  a 
Western  people  react  when  confronted  by  certain 
details  connected  with  the  character  and  activities 
of  immigrants  of  that  race. 

The  Japanese  a Colored  Race.  — Few  men  of  the 
West  accept  the  Japanese  on  the  same  terms  as 
they  do  the  representatives  of  the  different  branches 
of  the  white  race  because  they  are  colored.  Being 
a mixture  of  Malay,  Mongolian,  Tartar,  Cau- 
casian, and  negro  or  Negrito  elements,  they  stand 
out  in  a population  predominantly  white.  While 
many  missionaries,  artists,  scholars,  and  travelers 
do  not  react  naturally  against  the  colored  races, 
this  is  not  true  of  the  average  man.  There  is  such 
a thing  as  a consciousness  of  kind  and  a conscious- 
ness of  the  unlike.  Color  marks  a difference  in 
kind  most  people  are  more  or  less  conscious  of. 
This  is  a fundamental  fact  of  no  little  importance 
and  especially  in  California,  where  there  is  a Southern 
element  in  the  population  in  whom  the  natural  feel- 
ing of  opposition  to  a colored  race  has  been  deepened 
by  the  presence  and  struggle  over  the  negro. 

Different  Environments  have  accentuated  Racial 
Differences.  — Color  is,  however,  only  one  of  the  dif- 

239 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

ferences  between  the  Japanese  and  the  dominant  ele- 
ments in  the  white  race.  For  centuries  these  races 
have  lived  and  moved  in  different  environments. 
Different  types  of  mind,  a somewhat  different  outlook 
on  life,  somewhat  different  attitudes  toward  govern- 
ment, and  somewhat  different  attitudes  toward  the 
family  and  other  institutions,  have  resulted.  The 
Japanese  and  the  European  and  American  peoples 
have  been  molded  in  different  ways,  and  it  would 
appear  that  few  are  unconscious  of  the  fact  when 
the  two  races  are  brought  into  close  association. 
These  differences  are  accentuated  by  the  diffi- 
culties of  different  languages.  They  attract  some 
but  repel  most  people.  The  first  factor  in  analyz- 
ing the  situation  to  answer  the  question  raised  is 
found  in  racial  differences  which  not  only  limit 
association  but  generally  repel.  The  emphasis, 
however,  must  be  placed  on  the  difference  in  color, 
for  association  between  the  races  has  been  so 
limited  that  these  other  and  less  obvious  differences 
are  scarcely  known  to  the  great  majority  of  white 
men. 

The  Japanese  inherited  the  Prejudice  against  the 
Chinese.  — Another  factor,  and  a very  powerful 
one,  is  that  the  immigration  of  the  Japanese  fol- 
lowed that  of  the  Chinese.  The  whole  history  of  the 
Japanese  in  this  country  has  been  colored  by  that 
fact.  The  Chinese  came  to  the  West  under  such 
circumstances  that  they  stood  in  striking  contrast 
to  all  other  elements  in  the  population.  With 
a different  language,  with  queue  and  different 
dress,  with  no  family  life,  with  different  customs, 

240 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


and  steeled  against  change  as  they  were,  the  re- 
action against  them  was  strong  and  immediate 
when  they  ceased  to  be  objects  of  curiosity.  That 
they  underbid  others  when  seeking  employment 
merely  added  strength  to  the  reaction  and  fury 
to  the  opposition  with  which  they  would  have 
met  under  any  circumstances.  As  a result  of 
the  struggle  that  ensued  they  were  assigned  the 
inferior  place  they  unprotestingly  accepted.  The 
Chinaman  was  a good  loser.  Then  came  the 
Japanese.  They  came  from  the  same  “ quarter  of 
the  earth,”  were  of  related  color,  had  a similar 
language,  accepted  the  same  economic  rank  as  the 
Chinese,  frequently  occupied  their  bunkhouses, 
and  underbid  for  work  as  did  the  Chinaman. 
What  wonder,  though  they  were  vastly  different 
peoples,  that  the  Japanese  should  be  set  down  as 
being  in  the  same  category  as  the  Chinese?  In 
men’s  minds  they  were  assigned  the  same  place 
to  begin  with.  Moreover,  it  was  assumed  that 
they  should  continue  to  occupy  it.  Not  to  do  so 
was  to  be  regarded  as  undesirable,  as  will  be  shown 
presently.  The  writer’s  investigations  of  the  mat- 
ter extending  over  some  twelve  years  have  led  him 
to  emphasize  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  followed 
the  Chinese  as  Oriental  immigrants  to  the  West 
as  an  important  one  in  explaining  the  situation 
which  has  developed,  especially  in  California. 
But  there  have  been  numerous  other  elements  in 
the  situation. 

Economic  Conflict  Important  in  arousing  the 
Opposition  of  Laborers.  — One  of  the  most  impor- 
R 241 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

tant  factors  in  developing  a feeling  of  opposition  is 
found  in  the  economic  conflict  accompanying  the 
admission  of  the  Japanese.  In  many  instances 
they  underbid.  They  competed  on  different  terms. 
Each  economic  circle  has  its  more  or  less  well- 
defined  standards  and  it  reacts  strongly  when  these 
are  thought  to  be  endangered.  Laborers  reacted 
most  strongly  first  of  all  because  they  thought 
their  standards  were  imperiled.  The  Chinese  ac- 
quired a firm  position  in  the  manufacture  of  cigars, 
shoes,  and  garments  in  San  Francisco.  They  were 
used  to  defeat  the  ends  of  organized  labor,  and  the 
labor  unionists  reacted  strongly  against  them  as 
they  do  against  other  “ scabs  ” and  cheap  workmen. 
In  other  parts  of  the  country,  for  example  in  the 
manufacture  of  shoes  in  Massachusetts,  there  was 
talk  of  hiring  the  Chinese  to  take  the  places  of 
striking  union  men  and  to  control  the  labor  situa- 
tion. They  were  a menace  — as  workingmen  saw 
them.  Were  not  the  Japanese  also?  Did  they 
not  begin  very  much  as  the  Chinese?  Would  not 
history  repeat  itself?  Were  they  not  employed  as 
strike  breakers  in  the  manufacture  of  shoes  in 
San  Francisco?  White  laborers  reacted  against 
the  Japanese  because  they  competed  on  a different 
level.  It  does  not  matter  so  much  that  their 
competition  never  extended  far  when  their  immi- 
gration was  not  greatly  restricted.  It  was  poten- 
tial in  any  case.  Moreover,  the  competitors  were 
well  organized  under  contractors.  From  the  board- 
ing houses  and  elsewhere  they  were  collected  by 
their  “ bosses  ” and  made  easily  available.  The 

242 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 

effectiveness  of  the  organization  in  securing  work 
was  as  important,  in  fact  more  important,  than  the 
underbidding  in  wages  in  determining  the  result 
of  the  struggle.  The  labor  unions  stand  for  the 
setting  of  progressive  standards  and  offer  strong 
resistance  when  any  group  of  men  or  set  of  cir- 
cumstances threaten  or  seem  to  threaten  these 
standards.  Without  organization,  workingmen  re- 
act in  very  much  the  same  way  in  the  face  of  new 
competition. 

Also  of  Others.  — Other  classes  have  reacted 
only  less  radically  than  the  laborers  when  their 
economic  level  was  reached,  if  their  standards  were 
deviated  from  or  if  their  business  was  curtailed 
by  the  new  competitors.  Laundrymen  in  San 
Francisco  and  elsewhere,  barbers,  proprietors  of 
small  tailor  shops,  and  others  have  protested  when 
the  Japanese  have  entered  the  circle  of  competition 
and  cut  prices  or  brought  about  a loss  of  patron- 
age. The  cry  of  “ race  problem  ” has  been  em- 
ployed to  accomplish  economic  ends.  The  growers 
of  vegetables  about  Tacoma  and  Seattle,  and  the 
growers  of  berries  about  Los  Angeles  have  protested 
ineffectively  when  the  acreage  has  been  increased 
by  Japanese  growers  and  prices  have  fallen.  The 
newcomers  “ ruined  the  market,”  it  was  said. 
Italian  and  other  tenants  have  protested  when 
Japanese  competed  with  them  and  paid  a higher 
rent  for  land.  Just  so  far  as  competition  has 
extended  and  standards  have  been  affected  or 
there  seemed  to  be  reason  to  believe  that  there  was 
danger  that  they  would  be  affected,  has  there 

243 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

been  the  most  effective  “ bread  and  butter  ” 
reason  for  opposition  to  the  Japanese. 

Opposition  becomes  less  marked  as  Differences 
in  Standards  Disappear.  — In  the  competitive  strug- 
gle is  found  by  far  the  most  important  single  cause 
of  the  active  opposition  to  and  discrimination 
against  the  Japanese.  This  is  indicated  by  the 
more  liberal  attitude  when  the  standards  of  the 
races  become  the  same.  There  is,  on  the  whole, 
much  less  feeling  against  the  Japanese  than  there 
was  five  or  six  years  ago,  and  most  of  the  change 
has  been  due  to  the  gradual  disappearance  of  under- 
bidding and  related  matters  in  competition.  Where 
active  opposition  has  more  recently  appeared,  it 
will  almost  always  be  found  to  be  closely  connected 
with  newly  developed  competition. 

The  Charge  of  Dishonesty  frequently  Made.  — 
One  charge  frequently  made  against  the  Japanese 
by  farmers,  shippers,  and  business  men  is  that  many 
of  them  are  dishonest  and  will  not  observe  contracts 
entered  into.  The  charge  carries  with  it  an  exag- 
geration of  the  facts.  The  charges  have  been 
more  sweeping  than  the  facts  warranted. 

The  Facts  in  the  Case.  — The  Chinese  are 
notoriously  honest  in  all  contractual  relations,  and 
it  is  with  them,  and  especially  with  the  best  ele- 
ment of  them  now  engaged  in  agriculture  and  busi- 
ness, that  the  Japanese  are  compared.  In  Cali- 
fornia, especially,  there  have  been  many  instances 
in  which  Japanese  have  not  observed  the  standard 
set  by  the  Chinese.  The  explanation  is  not  far  to 
seek.  In  some  cases  contracts  have  not  been 

244 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


understood.  At  present  much  care  is  exercised  to 
see  that  all  of  the  terms  are  clearly  understood,  and 
partly  as  a result  of  this,  misunderstanding  and 
charges  of  breach  of  contract  have  become  very 
much  less  numerous  than  they  were.  Another 
factor  entering  into  the  explanation,  however,  is 
found  in  the  rather  weakly  developed  sense  of 
contract.  Because  of  the  environment  in  which 
they  have  been  reared,  the  Japanese  are  personal 
in  their  attitude.  Though  the  contract  sense  is 
rapidly  developing,  it  has  not  reached  the  level 
attained  by  most  races.  The  tenant  and  the 
laborer  are  likely  to  feel  that  they  should  not  be 
held  to  a bad  bargain.  If  the  wages  of  “ regular 
hands  ” are  lower  than  those  paid  to  “ temporary 
help,”  these  regular  hands  are  likely  to  feel  ag- 
grieved until  they  are  paid  as  much  as  the  others. 
Moreover,  being  ambitious  and  not  feeling  strongly 
the  sanctity  of  contract  obligations,  some  Japanese 
have  left  their  contracts  unfulfilled  and  taken  em- 
ployment elsewhere.  If  prices  are  low  or  the  crop 
is  poor,  the  tenant  paying  cash  rent  may  feel  that 
he  should  not  bear  the  entire  loss  and  demand 
that  the  landowner  share  it  with  him.^  Frequently 
the  difference  in  point  of  view  and  the  high  rents 
promised  by  Japanese  in  their  eagerness  to  become 
farmers  have  raised  an  issue  between  landlord  and 
tenant.  Sometimes  bosses  have  not  made  money 
when  doing  work  under  contract  and  have  left 
wages  and  bills  unpaid.  Sometimes  it  was  im- 

* It  is  said  that  it  is  customaiy  to  reduce  the  rent  under  such 
circumstances  in  Japan. 


245 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

possible  to  meet  their  obligations.  In  some  locali- 
ties several  years  ago  it  was  necessary  for  the 
Japanese  to  cooperate  to  meet  the  evil  of  the 
absconding  petty  boss.  Then,  on  the  other  hand, 
at  Fresno  and  in  some  other  places,  there  has  been 
much  violation  of  contracts  in  the  failure  to  do 
harvest  work  at  an  agreed  price.  The  boss,  either 
because  he  must  pay  more  for  his  help  and  will  be 
involved  in  loss,  or  because  the  circumstances  are 
such  that  he  could  get  it,  has  not  infrequently 
demanded  a higher  rate  per  ton  for  picking  grapes 
or  thinning  or  harvesting  beets. 

Fewer  Breaches  of  Contract  than  Formerly.  — 
It  is  evident  that  in  a large  percentage  of  these 
breaches  of  contract  there  are  two  sides  to  the  case. 
But  in  farming  communities  there  has  been  no 
cause  so  important  in  developing  opposition  to 
Japanese  as  instances  of  the  kind  noted.  It  is  not 
to  be  inferred,  however,  that  violations  of  contract 
are  or  have  been  general  or  that  the  Japanese 
generally  are  dishonest.  Most  have  given  no 
offense.  Moreover,  it  is  generally  agreed  by 
farmers  and  shippers  that  non-observance  of  con- 
tract obligations  is  much  more  exceptional  now 
than  ten  or  even  five  years  ago. 

The  Fault  of  Ambition.  — We  take  pride  in  the 
fact  that  we  are  an  ambitious  race,  but  if  immi- 
grants rise  in  such  a way  that  our  standards  are 
adversely  affected  in  an  obvious  way,  the  ambition 
and  capacity  which  make  it  possible  are  accounted 
undesirable  qualities.  In  the  opinion  of  the  labor- 
ing man  the  Chinese  and  the  Japanese  are  equally 

246 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 

undesirable  if  they  underbid.  The  farmer,  how- 
ever, is  likely  to  favor  the  one  because  contented, 
submissive,  and  almost  oxlike  as  a farm  laborer, 
and  to  criticize  the  other  because  he  will  not  remain 
in  one  place,  demands  higher  wages  when  the  traffic 
will  bear  it,  and  wishes  to  get  possession  of  the 
land  and  farm  it  on  his  own  account.  Business 
classes  have  never  reacted  strongly  against  Chinese 
who  compete  little  with  them,  but  many  say  that 
the  Japanese  are  undesirable  because  they  are 
ambitious  and  “ go  into  business.” 

TJie  Japanese  accused  of  being  “ Cocky.”  — 
Another  reason  for  the  opposition  is  the  very 
general  feeling  that  those  who  begin  in  an  inferior 
economic  position  should  remain  in  it  and  that 
the  Japanese  are  ” cocky.”  The  Japanese  have 
pride  in  their  race  and  are  anxious  to  be  regarded 
as  equal  to  any  other  race.  They  are  neither 
cringing  nor  servile.  In  dress  and  related  matters 
they  do  not  stint  themselves.  On  the  contrary, 
as  some  of  their  visiting  countrymen  have  observed, 
they  frequently  spend  over  much  on  dress.  When 
they  appear  in  up-to-date  suits  and  possibly  patent 
leather  shoes,  they  at  once  are  said  to  be  ” cocky.” 
Mr.  Woehlke  has  emphasized  this  and  phrased  it 
brilliantly.^ 

Their  Clannishness  another  Source  of  Opposi- 
tion. — A factor  of  considerable  importance  in 
arousing  opposition  to  the  Japanese  is  found  in  the 
details  of  their  immigration  and  their  clannishness. 
It  is  true  of  course  that  every  race  of  immigrants 
* In  The  Outlook,  May  lo,  1913,  pp.  61-65. 

247 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


is  more  or  less  clannish  because  of  language  and 
other  bonds.  Within  limits  it  is  well  that  it  is  so, 
for  in  their  close  cooperation  many  hardships  inci- 
dental to  the  adjustment  that  must  be  made  are 
reduced.  It  is  true,  also,  that  the  Orientals  in 
the  West  have  been  made  all  the  more  clannish 
by  the  refusal  of  others  to  accord  them  a normal 
place  in  the  population.  Yet  it  is  believed  to  be 
true  that  the  J apanese  are  peculiar  in  the  degree  of 
clannishness  which  obtains  among  them.  As  some 
of  the  Japanese  and  more  of  their  friends  who  have 
studied  them  carefully,  have  stated,  they  are  in 
contrast  to  the  Chinaman,  the  American,  and  the 
European  in  the  weakness  of  the  individualistic 
spirit.  Without  implying  that  it  is  an  undesirable 
quality,  it  is  true  that  the  Japanese  are  clannish. 
But  be  this  as  it  may  and  be  the  reasons  of  foreign 
or  of  American  origin,  the  average  person  in  a city 
or  other  industrial  center  has  observed  Japanese 
arriving  in  groups,  going  to  the  Japanese  boarding 
house,  and  doing  other  things,  in  “ mass.”  What- 
ever the  reason,  the  Japanese  have  acted  together 
and  have  not  been  individualistic  in  their  life  and 
activities.  They  have  marked  themselves  as  dif- 
ferent from  others. 

The  Attitude  of  the  Japanese  Government  an 
Important  Cause  of  Opposition  to  its  Subjects.  — 
Not  the  least  factor  in  begetting  opposition  to  the 
Japanese  is  to  be  found  in  the  attitude  of  the  Jap- 
anese government  towards  its  immigrants,  and  the 
solicitude  of  their  semipublic  organizations  for 
the  welfare  of  the  members  of  their  race  on  Ameri- 

248 


JAPANESE  CHARACTERISTICS 


can  soil.  Without  implying  that  it  is  objection- 
able or  the  contrary,  it  is  true  that  the  Japanese 
government  has  evinced  an  unusual  interest  in  the 
whereabouts  and  activities  of  its  subjects.  The 
emigration  companies  developed  out  of  it ; emi- 
grants have  been  treated,  it  would  appear,  almost 
as  colonists.  Certain  obligations  were  laid  upon 
the  emigration  companies  to  care  for  those  emigrat- 
ing through  them,  and,  under  certain  circumstances, 
to  provide  for  their  return  to  the  native  land. 
Appeals  to  the  government  at  home  have  been  fre- 
quent and  the  response  has  been  quickly  made. 
The  closeness  of  the  relation  between  the  govern- 
ment and  its  subjects  and  the  solicitude  of  the  one 
for  the  rights  and  welfare  of  the  other  have  been 
important  in  explaining  the  situation  which  has 
developed  in  the  West.  Solicitude  in  Japan  has 
begotten  some  of  the  hostility  in  America. 

Likewise  that  of  Japanese  Organizations.  — 
Moreover,  organizations  in  this  country  have 
followed  the  same  policy.  The  Japanese  associa- 
tions, the  prefectural  societies,  and  the  business 
men’s  organizations  have  looked  carefully  to  the 
welfare  and  the  behavior  of  the  immigrants.  They 
have  accomplished  a great  deal  of  good.  At  the 
same  time  the  fact  that  information  is  collected 
by  these  organizations,  and  that  through  them 
things  are  accomplished  in  a concerted  manner, 
have  emphasized  differences,  begotten  distrust, 
and  instilled  a certain  amount  of  fear  in  Americans. 

Agitation  and  Organized  Opposition  have  Fanned 
the  Flames.  — These  and  other  minor  considera- 

249 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

tions  have  been  seized  upon  by  organized  labor, 
the  Asiatic  Exclusion  League,  politicians  and  others, 
whose  agitation  has  then  been  a very  important 
factor  in  developing  opposition  and  causing  dis- 
criminatory action.  Indeed,  here  we  find  the 
efficient  cause  of  much  that  has  happened  and  much 
of  that  which  obtains.  Yet,  in  continued  agitation 
and  extensive  misrepresentation  the  cause  of  causes 
is  not  to  be  found.  Without  a fertile  field,  without 
other  factors,  agitation  and  misrepresentation  could 
accomplish  little.  But  with  a fertile  field  and  other 
factors  making  for  opposition,  agitation  and  organ- 
ized opposition  have  fanned  the  flames,  spread 
the  fire,  and  made  for  active  opposition. 

Assimilation  and  Amalgamation.  — This  analysis 
would  be  incomplete  were  nothing  said  concerning 
the  matter  of  assimilation.  When  those  who  hold 
that  the  Japanese  are  undesirable  are  questioned, 
emphasis  will  almost  invariably  be  placed  on  the 
asserted  unassimilability  of  the  members  of  that 
race.  Probably  something  will  be  added  con- 
cerning the  undesirable  result  of  race  mixture. 
In  public  discussions  and  private  conferences  more 
emphasis  is  placed  upon  these  than  upon  all  else. 
It  may  be  said,  however,  that  these  are  general 
social  considerations  which  have  not  been  so  im- 
portant in  begetting  the  kind  of  opposition  to  the 
Japanese  witnessed,  as  some  of  the  other  more 
intimate,  “ every  day  ” facts  noted  above.  Yet 
from  a social  point  of  view  these  questions  are 
important.  A separate  chapter  must  be  devoted 
to  them. 


250 


CHAPTER  X 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 

The  Twofold  Question  of  Assimilation  and  Amal- 
gamation. — Can  J apanese  immigrants  be  assimi- 
lated ? Does  the  question  of  assimilation  involve 
race  amalgamation  ? 

Seven  years  ago  the  Asiatic  Exclusion  League 
of  North  America  was  organized.  At  its  initial 
meeting  in  Seattle  a constitution  was  adopted, 
the  preamble  to  which  read  in  part  as  follows : 
“ The  Caucasian  and  the  Asiatic  races  are  un- 
assimilable.  Contact  between  these  races  must 
result,  under  the  conditions  of  industrial  life  ob- 
taining in  North  America,  in  injury  to  the  former, 
proportional  to  the  extent  to  which  such  contact 
prevails.  The  preservation  of  the  Caucasian  race 
upon  American  soil,  and  particularly  upon  the 
west  shore  thereof,  necessitates  the  adoption  of  all 
possible  measures  to  prevent  or  minimize  the  immi- 
gration of  Asiatics  to  America.”  The  editor  of  the 
Review  of  Reviews  agrees  substantially  with  the 
initial  statement  quoted  from  the  League’s  pre- 
amble. In  commenting  upon  California’s  alien 
land  law  he  has  written:  “The  Japanese  are 
intensely  distinct  and  self-conscious  as  a race  and 
nation.  Those  who  come  here,  come  as  Japanese. 
They  have  no  thought  of  becoming  Americans.  . . . 

251 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

The  two  civilizations  will  not  readily  assimilate 
when  brought  into  close  contact.”  ^ 

Generally  held  that  Japanese  cannot  be  Assimi- 
lated. Intermarriage  Objected  to.  — In  this  nega- 
tive answer  to  the  question  as  to  whether  the 
Japanese  can  be  assimilated  nearly  all  persons  con- 
ferred with  are  in  agreement.  The  exceptions, 
who  strongly  assert  the  contrary,  are  comparatively 
few.  Among  those  who  maintain  that  the  Japanese 
are  not  assimilable  and  that  their  Immigration 
involves  a race  problem  are  many  of  their  friends 
and  most  of  those  who  advocate  a limited  immigra- 
tion to  serve  economic  ends.  A few  of  them  are 
close  students  of  the  race  — one  a former  consul  and 
another  a newspaper  man,  both  of  them  regarded  as 
pro-Japanese.  And,  further,  the  feeling  is  wide- 
spread in  California  that  any  intermarriage  between 
white  and  Japanese  would  be,  in  the  language  of 
Mr.  Newman,  ” The  beginning  of  the  mightiest  prob- 
lem that  ever  faced  the  American  people.”  Inevi- 
tably this  question  of  race  amalgamation  will  be  in- 
troduced into  any  discussion  of  that  of  assimilation. 

The  Writer’s  Conclusions  relative  to  Assimilation 
and  Race  Amalgamation.  — The  answers  to  the  two- 
fold question  thus  raised  are  opinions,  hence  the 
writer  may  be  pardoned  for  presenting  his  own. 
His  conclusions  are  these  : 

(1)  That  the  Japanese  have  many  personal  quali- 
ties which  make  for  rapid  assimilation  ; 

(2)  That  in  their  assimilation  much  progress  has 
been  made ; 

‘ Review  of  Reviews,  June,  1913. 

252 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


(3)  That  whether  they  could  be  completely 
assimilated  under  favorable  conditions  only  time 
would  tell ; 

(4)  That  assimilation  depends  upon  numbers 
and  circumstances  as  well  as  upon  personal  char- 
acteristics ; 

(5)  That  even  with  limited  numbers  the  situation 
is  such  that  assimilation  is  unlikely  to  occur  in  the 
desired  degree ; 

(6)  That  with  large  numbers  it  would  not  take 
place ; 

(7)  That  the  evil  of  race  mixture  is  pretty  much 
of  a “ bogie.” 

The  object  of  this  chapter  is  to  record  briefly  the 
reasons  for  these  opinions.  No  effort  will  be  made, 
however,  to  support  these  conclusions  seriatim. 

Great  Dissimilarity  to  be  overcome,  but  the 
Japanese  Sensitive  to  their  Environment.  — - Assim- 
ilation involves  bringing  out  of  unlikeness  cooper- 
ation and  a sufficient  degree  of  likeness  so  that 
there  will  be  substantial  agreement  in  stand- 
ards and  reactions  to  stimuli.  Though  in  many 
respects  the  American  and  the  Japanese  races 
are  alike,  centuries  spent  in  different  environ- 
ments have  produced  deep-seated  dissimilarity. 
The  assimilation  of  the  Japanese  involves  less 
change  than  does  that  of  the  Chinese  or  the  East 
Indians,  but  more  than  does  that  of  most,  if  not 
all,  of  the  European  races  represented  upon  Ameri- 
can soil.  But  it  is  true  that  while  a very  different 
environment  has  caused  substantial  unlikeness, 
perhaps  no  nation  “ has  turned  to  environment  so 

253 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

sensitive  a front  as  the  Japanese.  Its  history  of 
twenty-five  centuries  is  a record  of  unceasing 
adoption  and  assimilation  ” ^ of  things  brought 
within  its  grasp. 

They  have  tahen  Much  from  other  Nations.  — 

The  Chinese  language  and  culture  early  left  their 
imprint.  More  recently  Occidental  industrial  arts, 
forms  of  government,  and  educational  systems  have 
been  studied,  accepted,  adapted,  and  made  use 
of.  The  Christian  religion  has  taken  firm  root 
there.  The  Japanese  have  not  been  steeled  against 
change.  Their  rapidly  changing  civilization  and 
recent  phenomenal  progress  bear  witness  to  this. 

Japanese  quickly  conform  to  Certain  Standards 
of  the  Adopted  Country.  — Most  of  the  Japanese 
who  have  emigrated  have  done  so  for  the  sake  of 
economic  gain,  and  with  the  intention  of  returning 
later  to  Japan.  Like  other  comparatively  new 
immigrants,  only  a minority  have  ceased  to  look 
back  to  their  native  land.  Yet  they  have  come  with 
the  desire  to  learn  and  to  make  progress,  and  have 
been  sensitive  to  their  new  environment.  Liter- 
ate, intelligent,  studious,  imitative,  desiring  to  be 
recognized  as  equals  and  feeling  offended  when 
treated  as  a dissimilar  and  inferior  race,  they  have 
quickly  conformed  to  many  of  the  requirements 
and  customs  of  the  adopted  country. 

Dress.  — Except  occasionally  about  the  “ camp  ” 
in  the  evening,  the  writer  has  not  seen  the  native 
Japanese  dress  in  the  continental  United  States. 
The  Japanese  dress  well  and  in  American  clothes. 

1 Quoted  from  Kawakami,  Asia  at  the  Door,  p.  62. 

254 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


They  are  sensitive  and  wish  to  conform  to  the  stand- 
ards set  by  others  in  such  obvious  matters  as  dress. 

Furnishings.  — The  raised  platform  serving  as 
a “ bunk  ” is  extensively  used  where  Japanese 
men  are  employed  and  provided  with  shelter  in 
groups.  But  in  by  far  the  largest  number  of  the 
“ bunk  houses  ” observed,  the  improvised  beds 
are  like  those  used  by  other  men  in  “ camp,”  and 
the  Japanese  families  invariably  use  the  usual 
American  bed.  The  same  is  true  of  nearly  all  of 
their  furnishings,  unless  it  be  the  ” open  fire  ” for 
cooking,  which  the  average  Japanese  housewife  is 
loath  to  discard  for  the  American  stove.  Chop 
sticks  continue  in  very  general  use,  but  in  every  one 
of  the  houses  investigated  the  past  summer,  knives, 
forks,  and  spoons  were  found,  and  rather  frequently 
they  were  more  or  less  regularly  used  by  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Japanese  households. 

Diet.  — Twenty  years  have  witnessed  a consid- 
erable change  in  the  diet  of  the  Japanese  in  the 
United  States.  While  rice  and  fish  still  occupy  a 
prominent  place  in  the  food  eaten,  the  consumption 
of  meat,  breakfast  foods,  and  other  non-Japanese 
dishes  has  rapidly  increased.  Taking  the  families 
of  Japanese  and  Italian  farmers,  the  diet  of  the 
one  is  no  more  characteristic  of  the  race  than  that 
of  the  other.  Neither  is  their  diet  without  desirable 
variety,  nor  less  expensive  than  that  of  other 
immigrant  races  in  similar  economic  positions. 

Their  Standard  of  Housing  notably  Inferior.  — 
The  one  point  in  which  the  Japanese  standard  of 
living  is  notably  inferior  is  in  housing.  This  has 

255 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

been  commented  on  in  various  parts  of  this  report. 
While  there  is  a distinct  improvement  where  they 
own  land  and  build  their  own  houses,  they  are 
usually  less  good  and  less  commodious  than  those 
built  by  white  persons  of  equal  means.  The  great 
majority  of  them,  however,  are  living  in  rented 
houses  or  in  shelters  provided  by  their  employers. 
In  either  case  they  have  only  a limited  control 
over  the  character  of  the  place  in  which  they  reside. 
The  employers  expect  the  Japanese  to  occupy  the 
Chinese  “ bunk  house  ” or  a similar  structure, 
while  in  the  cities,  they  are  usually  practically  seg- 
regated and  assigned  to  an  older  locality  in  which 
the  buildings  have  deteriorated.  Moreover,  land- 
lords, influenced  no  doubt  by  their  experience  with 
the  Chinese,  are  slow  to  make  desired  repairs. 
Yet  this  situation  is  not  entirely  the  fault  of  the 
white  employer  or  landlord.  The  Japanese  have 
been  willing  to  observe  a lower  standard  in  the 
matter  of  housing  than  the  American  or  the  average 
European,  though  not  lower  than  that  of  the  Greek, 
the  South  Italian,  and  some  of  the  less  desirable 
races  of  immigrants  from  South  and  East  Europe, 
and  he  demands  distinctly  better  accommodations 
than  the  Mexicans. 

Standards  of  Work,  Hours,  Wages,  Rent,  and 
Profits.  — A much  more  important  detail  in  which 
American  standards  have  not  been  readily  adopted 
involves  important  economic  considerations.  In 
different  parts  of  this  report  the  work  of  the  Japa- 
nese women  has  been  commented  upon.  Fre- 
quently, and  in  the  rural  communities  especially, 

256 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


they  have  neglected  household  duties  for  work  in 
shop  or  field.  In  this  respect  the  Japanese  continue 
to  set  themselves  off  from  all  other  important  ele- 
ments in  the  population  except  the  German- 
Russians,  who  are  found  in  large  numbers  in 
Colorado  and  about  Fresno,  California.  With 
both  the  German- Russian  and  the  Japanese  farmers 
it  is  still  a “ workaday  ” life  in  “ making  ” the 
rent  or  paying  for  the  land  they  have  purchased. 
The  hours  worked  by  Japanese  farmers  are  long, 
and  their  work  frequently  continues  the  seven  days 
of  the  week.  This  is  truer  of  those  in  California 
than  elsewhere,  however,  and  in  that  state  agricul- 
tural work  is  frequently  engaged  in  on  Sunday  by 
others.  It  has  been  suggested  that  the  length  of 
the  workday  should  be  controlled  by  law.  This 
suggestion,  however,  is  not  well  taken,  for  while 
Sunday  labor  may  be  prohibited,  how  long  one 
may  work  on  his  own  account  may  not  be  re- 
stricted by  law.  Nor,  as  yet,  have  the  courts 
permitted  the  regulation  of  the  hours  of  labor  of 
adult  male  employees  except  in  dangerous  occupa- 
tions, such  as  underground  work  in  the  operation 
of  mines.  Moreover,  as  has  been  set  forth,  the 
standards  set  by  other  races  as  regards  profit  and 
the  rents  paid  for  land  have  not  been  generally 
accepted  by  Asiatics  in  the  West.  The  reasons  for 
the  different  standards  frequently  observed  by 
them  have  been  presented  earlier  in  this  report  and 
need  not  be  repeated  here. 

Learning  to  speak  English.  — In  spite  of  the 
great  obstacles,  the  Japanese  in  the  United  States 

257 


s 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

have  made  rapid  progress  in  learning  the  English 
language  — an  indispensable  condition  to  Ameri- 
canization. According  to  the  Census  of  1910, 
45.8  per  cent  of  the  female  and  62.4  per  cent  of  the 
male  Japanese  ten  years  of  age  and  over  in  the 
United  States  were  able  to  speak  our  language. 
The  corresponding  percentages  for  the  Chinese 
were  49.6,  and  58.8  ; for  foreign-born  whites  whose 
mother  tongue  was  other  than  English,  77.4,  and 
77.0.  In  using  these  figures  it  must  be  borne  in 
mind  that  in  length  of  residence  in  this  country, 
the  Chinese  had  had  a distinct  advantage  over  the 
Japanese.  So  had  the  foreign-born  whites  taken 
as  a whole.  Moreover,  many  of  the  Europeans 
had  immigrated  as  children,  while  few  of  the  Japa- 
nese had  done  so. 

The  Japanese  and  Others  of  Non-English  Mother 
Tongue.  — The  Immigration  Commission  applied 
the  test  of  length  of  residence  in  making  its  com- 
parisons between  the  Japanese  and  other  immigrant 
races  whose  mother  tongue  was  other  than  English. 
After  proper  allowance  is  made  for  previous  resi- 
dence of  Japanese  in  Hawaii  or  Canada,  and  for  the 
study  of  English  grammar  in  their  native  high 
schools,  the  comparisons  are  found  to  be  favorable 
to  the  Japanese  as  against  many  of  the  races  em- 
braced within  the  so-called  " newer  immigration.” 
Among  the  details  are  these  U 

‘‘  The  contrast  between  the  Japanese  and  the 
Chinese  employed  in  agricultural  pursuits  is  strik- 

‘ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  pp.  148-149. 

258 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


ing.  Although  94.9  per  cent  of  the  Chinese  from 
whom  data  were  obtained  have  been  in  the  United 
States  10  years  or  over,  and  the  great  majority 
20  years  or  over,  a smaller  percentage  of  them  than 
of  the  Japanese  speak  English,  although  90.4  per 
cent  of  the  latter  have  been  here  less  than  10  years 
and  56.5  per  cent  less  than  5 years.  Indeed,  of 
the  Japanese  who  have  resided  in  the  United  States 
less  than  5 years,  58.8  per  cent  speak  English,  as 
opposed  to  66.9  per  cent  of  the  Chinese  who  have 
been  here  10  years  or  over.  This  wide  difference 
between  the  two  races  is  not  due  to  differences  in 
their  environments,  for  the  conditions  under  which 
Chinese  farm  laborers  live  and  work  are  substan- 
tially the  same  as  those  which  surround  the  Jap- 
anese, but  it  is  the  result  chiefly  of  the  different 
attitude  of  the  two  races  toward  American  customs 
and  our  language.  The  Chinese  are  self-satisfied 
and  indifferent  in  this  regard,  whereas  the  Jap- 
anese are  eager  to  learn  the  English  language  or 
anything  pertaining  to  Western  civilization.  The 
same  contrast  between  these  races  with  regard  to 
progress  in  learning  to  speak  English  is  found  in 
the  other  industries  where  Japanese  and  Chinese 
are  employed  in  similar  branches  of  work.” 

With  reference  to  Japanese  and  Mexicans  we 
read : 

” Of  those  employed  on  street  railways,  for  ex- 
ample, 58.8  per  cent  of  the  102  Japanese  speak 
English,  as  against  only  17.4  per  cent  of  the  539 
Mexicans,  and  this  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  70.6 
per  cent  of  the  former  as  against  57.9  per  cent  of  the 
latter  have  been  in  this  country  less  than  five  years. 

259 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Indeed,  only  41.9  per  cent  of  the  81  Mexicans 
whose  period  of  residence  is  ten  years  or  over  speak 
English,  while  50  per  cent  of  the  72  Japanese 
who  have  been  here  less  than  five  years  have  ac- 
quired our  tongue. 

“ A comparison  of  the  Japanese  employed  in  the 
mining  of  coal  with  other  races  most  commonly 
used  in  similar  occupations  in  that  industry  shows 
that  their  progress  in  learning  to  speak  English 
has  been  relatively  rapid.  Of  the  199  Japanese 
who  have  been  in  the  United  States  less  than  five 
years,  44.7  per  cent  speak  English,  as  opposed  to 
38.8  per  cent  of  the  129  Poles,  38.7  per  cent  of  the 
562  North  Italians,  36.7  per  cent  of  the  229  Slove- 
nians, 31.8  per  cent  of  the  44  Slovaks,  and  28.7  per 
cent  of  the  216  South  Italians.  On  the  other  hand, 
however,  48.7  per  cent  of  the  152  Croatians,  51.8 
per  cent  of  the  170  Montenegrins,  and  62.3  per 
cent  of  the  61  Finns  in  this  residence  group  speak 
English.  It  should  be  noted,  moreover,  that  with 
the  exception  of  the  South  Italians,  the  Europeans 
whose  period  of  residence  was  more  than  five  years 
show  more  progress  in  this  regard  than  the  Jap- 
anese, indicating  either  that  the  percentage  for 
Japanese  who  have  been  here  a relatively  short 
time  is  greatly  affected  by  residence  in  Hawaii 
or  Canada,  or  that  they  continue  longer  than  the 
Europeans  under  conditions  which  retard  assimi- 
lation.” 

The  effect  of  unfavorable  conditions  in  retarding 
the  assimilation  of  the  Japanese  will  be  discussed 
presently.  In  connection  with  the  matter  in  hand, 
however,  it  may  be  said  that  clannishness,  isolated 
life,  and  difficulty  encountered  due  to  linguistic 

260 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 

diflferences  have  prevented  the  Japanese  who 
speak  English  from  speaking  it  as  well  as  the 
Italian  or  other  European  who  has  been  in  this 
country  the  same  length  of  time.  This  difference 
impressed  itself  upon  the  writer  during  his  investi- 
gations made  during  the  past  summer. 

The  Reading  and  Writing  of  English.  — A con- 
siderable number  of  the  Japanese  investigated  by 
the  Immigration  Commission  had  learned  to  read 
and  write  English.  Of  the  male  wage  earners  the 
percentage  was  30.5,  of  the  business  men  and 
farmers,  48.6.  The  corresponding  percentages  for 
the  females  in  these  two  groups  were  8.7  and  13.3. 
The  Commission  in  this  matter  again  made  inter- 
esting comparisons  between  the  Japanese  and 
other  immigrants.^ 

“ A comparison  of  the  Japanese  and  Chinese 
males  engaged  in  agriculture  shows  that  19.8  per 
cent  of  the  former  as  opposed  to  only  1.6  per  cent 
of  the  latter  read  and  write  English.  Comparing 
the  data  gathered  from  immigrants  employed  in 
the  mining  of  coal,  a larger  percentage  of  the  Jap- 
anese read  and  write  English  than  of  most  of  the 
races  from  South  and  East  Europe.  Indeed,  while 
47.2  per  cent  of  the  447  Japanese  employed  in  this 
industry  read  and  write  English,  only  34.2  per 
cent  of  the  225  Finns,  22.3  per  cent  of  the  479 
Slovenians,  20.7  per  cent  of  the  214  Slovaks,  19.3 
per  cent  of  the  419  Croatians,  18.8  per  cent  of  the 
245  Poles,  17.6  per  cent  of  the  193  Montenegrins, 
14  per  cent  of  the  1175  North  Italians,  and  9.9 


‘ Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  VoL  23,  p.  155. 

261 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

per  cent  of  the  485  South  Italians  have  acquired 
these  arts.  These  comparisons,  however,  should 
be  somewhat  modified  because  of  the  fact  that 
many  of  the  Japanese  have  resided  in  the  Hawaiian 
Islands  and  Canada,  prior  to  their  immigration 
to  the  continental  United  States,  and,  further, 
that  some  of  them  have  studied  English  in  Jap- 
anese schools.  With  due  allowance  for  these  fac- 
tors in  their  progress,  the  proportion  of  Japanese 
who  read  and  write  English  is  unusually  high 
as  compared  to  most  of  the  immigrant  races  em- 
ployed in  similar  kinds  of  work.” 

With  the  passing  of  time,  of  course,  the  percentage 
of  Japanese  who  speak,  or  read  and  write  English 
is  much  larger  than  indicated  by  the  census  of  four 
years  ago  or  by  the  Immigration  Commission  five 
years  ago.  We  are  interested  here,  however,  only 
in  the  rapidity  with  which  the  Japanese  gain  com- 
mand of  our  language. 

Japanese  Schools  for  instructing  Adults  in  Eng- 
lish. — The  showing  thus  made  by  the  Japanese  is 
good.  It  represents  much  definite  educational 
activity  on  the  part  of  this  studious  and  intelligent 
race.  Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the 
schools  conducted  by  the  Japanese  in  different 
western  cities.  To  quote  again  from  the  Immi- 
gration Commission : 

” No  less  than  33,  the  primary  aim  of  which  is 
to  instruct  adult  Japanese  in  the  English  language, 
were  reported  by  agents  of  the  Commission  in  Los 
Angeles,  San  Francisco,  Oakland,  and  Sacramento, 
California,  and  Seattle  and  Tacoma,  Washington. 

262 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


Of  these,  several  were  designed  primarily  for  the 
‘ student  class,’  and  embraced  all  subjects  prepara- 
tory for  high  school,  and  in  one  or  two  cases  for 
college  work.  The  great  majority,  however,  were 
conducted  by  the  various  religious  missions  and 
by  private  parties  with  the  primary  aim  of  impart- 
ing a knowledge  of  English  to  Japanese  laborers.”  ^ 

Magazines  and  Papers  read  by  Japanese.  — 

One  of  the  most  important  factors  assisting  or 
retarding  assimilation  is  found  in  newspapers  and 
magazines  read.  Those  subscribed  for  indicate, 
also,  the  extent  to  which  immigrants  have  been 
assimilated  and  their  standard  of  living.  The 
Immigration  Commission  in  its  investigations  ob- 
tained data  with  reference  to  these  from  the  house- 
holds investigated.  The  data  for  the  Japanese 
are  presented  in  the  following  table  : 


Number  Taking 

Number 

Newspa- 

Households 

OF  House- 

Only  news- 

Only  news- 

pers;  some 
printed  in 
Japanese, 
some^  in 
English 

HOLDS 

No  news- 
paper 

papers^ 
printed  in 
Japanese 

papers 
printed  in 
English 

City  households 

332 

8 

193 

4 

127 

Farm  households 

490 

136 

322 

0 

32 

Thus  322  of  the  490  farm  households,  and  193 
of  the  332  city  households  had  only  papers  printed 
in  the  Japanese  language.  Some  of  these  were 
^ Quoted  from  Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  152. 

263 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

published  in  Japan,  but  most  of  them  in  the  cities 
of  the  Pacific  States.  They  present  Japanese  and 
American  news  from  the  Japanese  point  of  view. 
On  the  other  hand,  32  of  the  farm  and  131  of  the 
city  households  had  papers  published  in  English. 
The  schedules  used  showed  that  the  Literary 
Digest,  the  Independent,  the  Outlook,  the  Review  of 
Reviews,  the  Pacific  Monthly,  and  Collier's  Weekly 
were  among  the  magazines  taken. 

After  presenting  the  above  data,  the  Commis- 
sion made  this  summary  statement  of  value  for 
the  purpose  in  hand  : 

“ Without  entering  upon  detailed  comparisons, 
it  is  found  that  the  number  of  Japanese  subscrib- 
ing for  no  newspaper  is  much  smaller  than  that 
of  the  Italians  and  Portuguese.  Moreover,  the 
number  of  publications  taken  is  very  much  larger. 
In  all  of  these  respects  the  Japanese  compare  favor- 
ably with  the  households  of  North  European  im- 
migrants. It  is  true,  however,  that  a far  larger 
percentage  of  the  publications  subscribed  for  are 
printed  in  their  native  language  in  the  case  of  the 
Japanese  than  in  the  case  of  city  and  farm  house- 
holds of  most  of  the  other  races  investigated.  This- 
fact  is  of  importance  for  it  shows  at  once  the  in- 
terests and  an  important  source  of  information  of 
the  majority  of  the  Japanese  immigrants.”  ^ 

The  Japanese  Children.  — Thus  far  the  dis- 
cussion has  related  to  adult  Japanese.  At  present, 
however,  there  are  several  thousand  children, 
foreign  or  native  born,  in  the  Western  states. 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  159. 

264 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


Observation  and  investigation  show  that  they  are 
receiving  the  benefits  of  good  schooling  and  with 
results  not  different  from  those  in  the  case  of  children 
of  other  races.  They  attend  school  regularly,  are 
studious,  comparatively  few  except  those  who 
immigrate  from  Japan  are  retarded  in  their  studies, 
and  they  are  generally  well  received  by  the  other 
pupils.  There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  as  they 
grow  up,  they  will  be  different  from  others  except  in 
color  and  physique  inherited,  and  social  rank  and 
attitude  as  affected  by  the  work,  rank,  and  attitude 
of  the  adults  of  the  Japanese  race.  In  the  near 
future  they  will  no  doubt  be  a most  potent  factor 
in  the  assimilation  of  the  foreign-born  adults. 

Supplementary  Schools.  — In  this  connection 
the  Japanese  supplementary  school  found  in  most 
Japanese  communities  must  be  noted.  The  Japa- 
nese boarding  schools  are  too  few  to  be  of  any 
importance.  The  place  occupied  by  the  supple- 
mentary school  has  been  accurately  set  forth  by 
Mr.  Kawakami  in  his  Asia  at  the  Door}  As  he 
points  out,  these  schools  are  attended  by  the  Japa- 
nese pupils  after  the  public  schools  close  for  the 
day.  They  are  for  the  study  of  the  Japanese 
language,  literature,  geography,  and  history. 
Though  the  indirect  effect  may  be  to  retard  assimi- 
lation somewhat,  and  though  “ in  rare  instances 
Japanese  teachers  are  inclined  to  inspire  in  the 
hearts  of  their  youthful  pupils  such  sentiments 
and  creeds  as  would  hinder  their  assimilation  with 
American  ideas  and  traditions,”  ^ these  schools 
1 Pp.  8o  et  seq.  ^ Ibid.,  p.  82. 


265 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

are  not  intended  to  perpetuate  the  traditions  and 
moral  concepts  of  Japan.  They  are  supplemen- 
tary schools,  and  at  the  worst,  there  is  much  less 
in  them  to  be  adversely  criticized  than  in  the 
parochial  schools  attended  by  so  many  children  of 
South  and  East  European  immigrants.  No  real 
problem  is  yet  evident  connected  with  Japanese 
children  on  American  soil.  The  place  they  will 
occupy  as  adults,  however,  remains  to  be  seen. 
It  will  depend  to  a considerable  extent  upon  the 
place  occupied  by  the  older  immigrants. 

Many  Facts  indicate  Much  Capacity  for  Assimila- 
tion and  Considerable  Progress.  But  what  of 
Certain  Fundamentals  ? — ^ But  are  not  some  of  the 
things  thus  far  considered  superficial  and  of  little 
consequence?  No  doubt  some  of  them  are.  Yet, 
taken  together  they  are  significant.  They  indicate 
much  capacity  on  the  part  of  the  Japanese  for 
assimilation.  They  indicate,  moreover,  that  while 
much  remains  to  be  done,  considerable  progress 
has  been  made  in  the  adoption  of  American  forms, 
customs,  and  language.  Yet  the  central  ideas  in  the 
thought  of  those  who  maintain  that  the  Japanese 
cannot  be  Americanized  appear  to  be  that  their  color 
imposes  an  impassable  bar  between  the  races,  that 
their  religious  conceptions  cannot  be  overturned, 
their  clannishness  broken  down,  and  their  extreme 
loyalty  to  Japan  transferred  to  another  government. 

The  Christian  Religion.  — The  Christian  religion 
has  taken  firm  root  in  Japan  and  a considerable 
percentage  of  the  immigrants  have  become  con- 
verts before  leaving  their  native  land.  To  these 

266 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


Others  have  been  added  as  a result  of  the  work  of 
the  Christian  missions  in  different  settlements  in 
the  Western  states  so  that  about  four  or  five  per 
cent  of  the  entire  number  are  members  of  the  differ- 
ent Christian  denominations.  In  California,  for 
example,  there  were  last  year  48  Japanese  mission 
churches  with  a combined  membership  of  2430. 
The  number  of  converts  during  the  year  was  447.^ 
These  churches  have  become  federated  under  the 
Japanese  Interdenominational  Board  of  Missions, 
organized  in  1911.  Cooperating  as  they  do,  con- 
ducting no  fewer  than  twelve  schools  for  the 
teaching  of  English  and  seven  kindergartens,  and 
sending  evangelists  to  every  part  of  the  state  where 
there  are  more  than  a few  Japanese,  not  only  to 
preach  the  gospel  but  to  assist  in  anything  making 
for  right  living  and  right  relations,  these  Christian 
missions  are  an  important  factor  in  assimilation. 
In  the  other  states  the  same  kind  of  work  is  being 
carried  on  but  in  a less  organized  way.  Christian- 
ity is  making  progress  among  the  Japanese.  It  is 
important  that  it  should,  for  while  the  places  of 
worship  are  for  Japanese  only  and  comparatively 
few  of  the  race  attend  churches  attended  by  others,  so 
that  the  races  are  not  brought  into  close  contact, 
it  does  establish  a bond  between  them.  Moreover, 
the  acceptance  of  Christianity  seems  to  loosen  the 
bond  between  the  Japanese  and  his  fatherland. 

Buddhism.  — But,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  to  be 
pointed  out  that  the  number  of  Buddhists  is  larger 

1 From  annual  report  of  the  Deno-Dan  in  the  Shin  TeucM  Sup- 
plement, February  14,  1914. 

267 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


than  the  number  of  Christians,  and  that  their 
temples  have  rapidly  increased  in  number.  Several 
schools  for  the  teaching  of  English  and  a number  of 
dormitories  are  conducted  by  the  Buddhist  organ- 
izations, and  they  no  doubt  accomplish  a consider- 
able amount  of  good.  Yet  there  seems  to  be  a 
widespread  feeling  among  the  Japanese  that  much 
of  their  activity  runs  counter  to  assimilation.  My 
limited  observations  lead  me  to  regard  Mr.  Kawa- 
kami’s  remarks  concerning  this  as  entirely  fair.  He 
says : 

“If  the  purpose  of  the  Buddhists  were  to  prop- 
agate the  teachings  of  Buddha,  pure  and  simple, 
the  American  people,  I am  sure,  would  have  little 
to  complain  of.  Much  to  our  regret,  we  find  some 
of  the  Buddhist  priests  are  inclined  to  link  Buddhism 
with  patriotism  to  Japan,  knowing  that  this  method 
of  propaganda  appeals  to  the  ignorant  masses.  I 
do  not  see  why  the  Japanese  Buddhists  could  not 
be  broad-minded  enough,  and  clear-sighted  enough, 
to  see  the  folly  of  such  a policy.  Out  of  my  sincere 
respect  for  their  character  and  ideals,  I prefer  to 
believe  that  the  Buddhist  leaders  themselves  are 
absolutely  innocent  and  positively  disapprove  such 
unscrupulous  means  as  have  been  resorted  to  by 
their  followers.  It  is  also  regrettable  that  the 
Buddhists  keep  aloof  from  the  Christians  and  ap- 
parently have  no  desire  to  cooperate  with  them.”  ^ 

Non- Christian  Institutions  retard  Americaniza- 
tion. — Thus,  while  in  the  matter  of  religion  we 
find  in  the  Japanese  the  possibility  of  change,  and 

* Kawakami,  Asia  at  the  Door,  p.  233. 

268 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


while  the  institutions  among  them  are  doing  much 
to  further  assimilation,  the  net  influence  of  the  non- 
Christian  institutions  is  to  retard  Americanization. 
This  is  unfortunate,  of  course.  It  may  be  pointed 
out,  however,  that  some  of  the  religious  organiza- 
tions among  the  non-English  speaking  European  im- 
migrants likewise  do  much  to  retard  and  to  prevent 
assimilation.  Any  difference  is  only  one  of  degree. 

Japanese  Clannishness.  — It  cannot  be  disputed 
that  the  Japanese  are  clannish.  While  it  may  be 
said  that  this  is  true  of  other  immigrant  races,  also, 
there  are  differences  in  degree.  It  appears  to  be 
true  that  no  important  group  of  Europeans  in  the 
population,  unless  it  is  the  Poles,  is  as  clannish  as 
the  J apanese.  1 1 is  true,  of  course,  that  this  clannish- 
ness is  characteristic  of  any  element  when  new  in 
the  population.  It  is  true,  also,  that  in  the  case  of 
Asiatics  it  has  been  increased  by  the  attitude  of  the 
white  races.  Yet  these  facts  do  not  explain  all  that 
obtains.  Individualism  has  nowhere  in  the  case 
of  the  Japanese  been  characteristic.  A former 
consul  to  Japan  and  an  admirer  of  the  race  inter- 
prets much  in  its  history  and  activity  from  the 
point  of  view  of  the  clan.  Their  intense  patriotism, 
he  maintains,  is  merely  the  “ larger  clan  idea.” 
In  his  opinion  they  could  never  become  loyal  to 
any  other  as  against  their  own  country.  But  this 
is  squarely  denied  by  others  equally  well  informed, 
and  most  of  those  who  are  in  close  association  with 
the  Japanese  in  the  United  States  say  that  they 
would  quickly  avail  themselves  of  the  right  of 
citizenship  if  they  were  permitted  to  become  natu- 

269 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

ralized.  Mr.  Kawakami,  an  excellent  student  of 
race  problems,  maintains  that  their  patriotism  may 
be  transferred  to  another  country  without  diminu- 
tion; while  Dr.  Gulick  maintains  that  the  Japanese 
would  become  as  loyal  citizens  as  any  if  accorded 
proper  treatment  in  the  United  States.  Unfor- 
tunately it  is  all  a matter  of  conjecture  ; nowhere  has 
there  been  experience  to  establish  definitely  either 
position.  It  remains  true,  however,  that  the  rela- 
tion between  the  Japanese  government  and  its 
subjects  on  foreign  soil  is  a peculiarly  intimate  one. 
In  no  other  instance  is  it  so  close.  It  is  true,  also, 
that  some  of  the  representatives  of  the  government 
have  counseled  the  Japanese  to  be  true  to  the 
fatherland,  but,  if  permanently  settled  here,  to 
become  citizens  if  possible,  and  stated  that  such  a 
change  of  allegiance  would  argue  only  a higher 
patriotism  and  not  evidence  a loss  of  patriotism 
or  entail  injury  to  one’s  national  individuality.^ 
The  pro- Japanese  see  in  this  a willingness  on  the 
part  of  the  Japanese  government  to  have  its  subjects 
identify  themselves  with  another  country.  The 
anti-Japanese  see  in  it  evidence  on  the  part  of  the 
Japanese  to  remain  loyal  to  Japan,  for,  they  ask, 
why  should  the  Japanese  be  advised  with  reference 
to  their  duty  in  such  a matter  ? 

Complete  Assimilability  of  the  Japanese  must 
remain  a Disputed  Question.  Will  the  West  give 

1 Written  with  special  reference  to  an  address  by  the  Honorable 
Ebara,  delivered  in  Honolulu,  June,  1913.  His  address  is  more  or 
less  typical  of  numerous  other  speeches  made  to  Japanese  residents 
of  the  United  States. 


270 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


Necessary  Cooperation?  — Thus  the  question  as  to 
whether  the  members  of  this  race  could,  under 
favorable  circumstances,  be  Americanized  in  all 
respects  must  remain  a disputed  one.  But  it 
cannot  be  disputed  that  assimilation  of  any  race 
depends  upon  the  attitude  of  the  race  to  which  it  is 
to  be  assimilated  and  that  a situation  has  developed 
in  the  West  such  as  to  render  the  assimilation  of 
the  masses  of  the  Japanese  well-nigh  if  not  quite 
impossible  until  it  changes  in  important  respects. 
The  question  whether  the  people  of  the  West  will 
assimilate  the  Japanese  is  really  more  important 
than  whether  the  Japanese  can  be  assimilated. 

Little  Effort  being  made  to  remove  Causes  of 
Friction.  — In  the  preceding  chapters  the  wide- 
spread opposition  to  the  Japanese  has  been  noted 
and  an  attempt  has  been  made  to  explain  it. 
Barriers  have  been  erected  that  few  can  succeed  in 
surmounting.  That  “ The  Japanese,  like  the 
Chinese,  are  regarded  as  differing  so  greatly  from 
the  white  races  that  they  have  lived  in,  but  as  no 
integral  part  of,  the  community  ” and  that  “ a 
strong  public  opinion  has  segregated  them,  if  not 
in  their  work,  in  the  other  details  of  their  living,”  ^ 
is  almost  literally  true  in  California  and  only  less 
so  in  the  other  Western  states.  The  causes  of 
friction  have  been  numerous  and  except  on  the 
part  of  the  Japanese  organizations,  there  has  been 
little  effort  to  remove  the  causes  and  to  bring  about 
cooperation.  The  Christian  missions  have  accom- 
plished something.  So  has  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  in  some 

1 Immigration  Commission,  Reports,  Vol.  23,  p.  166. 

271 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

cities.  The  Japan  Society  of  America  is  conducting 
an  educational  campaign  to  develop  an  apprecia- 
tion of  Japanese  character  and  institutions,  and  to 
prevent  the  spread  of  misinformation  and  to  offset 
the  effects  of  agitation.  A similar  organization  in 
Los  Angeles  is  working  less  methodically  to  accom- 
plish the  same  ends  and  here  and  there  individuals 
are  making  an  earnest  effort  to  meet  problems  as 
they  arise.  But  the  effort  being  put  forth  is  small 
compared  with  that  required  to  remove  causes  that 
are  removable  and  to  develop  the  degree  of  coopera- 
tion required  to  solve  a problem  which  will  not  be 
solved  otherwise.  And,  with  much  greater  effort,  it 
would  remain  to  be  seen  whether  differences  in  color, 
standards,  and  possibly  other  things  not  so  obvious, 
would  not  still  tend  so  strongly  to  encyst  the  Jap- 
anese as  a foreign  element  in  the  population,  that  it 
would  not  be  overcome  in  the  desirable  degree. 

Without  a Restricted  Immigration  Assimilation 
would  not  take  Place.  — One  thing  germane  to  the 
question  under  discussion  cannot  be  a matter  of 
dispute.  Without  a narrowly  restricted  immigra- 
tion and  with  a considerable  influx  of  Japanese 
laborers,  the  desired  degree  of  assimilation  would 
not  take  place.  However  great  the  capacity  of 
the  immigrants  for  Americanization,  the  competi- 
tion which  would  develop,  combined  with  the 
present  elements  in  the  situation,  would  prevent  it. 


The  Question  of  Race  Amalgamation.  — As  al- 
ready stated,  the  matter  of  race  amalgamation  is 

272 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


almost  sure  to  be  introduced  when  the  assimilation 
of  the  Japanese  is  under  discussion.  And  naturally 
so,  for  intermarriage  between  the  races  follows 
upon  fairly  complete  assimilation,  and  the  unions 
thus  formed,  if  the  attendant  circumstances  are 
satisfactory,  become  a factor  in  assimilating  others. 

Intense  Opposition  to  Intermarriage  in  Cali- 
fornia. — In  the  West  the  marriage  of  Japanese 
and  Caucasian  is  frowned  upon.  This  results 
naturally  from  the  American  antipathy  for  a colored 
race  and  the  widespread  opposition  to  the  Asiatics. 
In  California  an  effort  has  been  made  to  prevent 
it  by  law.  Following  upon  an  earlier  amendment 
of  the  Civil  Code  to  prevent  miscegenation,  in 
1905  the  Code  was  again  amended  so  as  to  make 
the  marriage  of  white  persons  with  Mongolians, 
as  well  as  with  negroes  and  mulattoes,  illegal  and 
void.  Japanese  are  regarded  as  Mongolians.  In 
fact  the  amendment  of  the  law  in  1905  was 
meant  to  relate  especially  to  marriage  between 
them  and  white  persons.  In  California  the  feeling 
against  any  intermarriage  has  been  used  effectively 
in  the  agitation  carried  on.  Thus  when  hearings 
were  held  in  the  spring  of  1913  on  the  alien  land  bills 
at  Sacramento,  the  remarks  of  Mr.  Newman  bearing 
upon  this  matter  had  more  effect  than  anything  else 
said.  In  the  course  of  his  remarks  he  said  : 

“ Near  my  home  is  an  eighty-acre  tract  of  as 
fine  land  as  there  is  in  California.  On  that  land 
lives  a Japanese.  With  that  Japanese  lives  a 
white  woman.  In  that  woman’s  arms  is  a baby. 
What  is  that  baby?  It  isn’t  a Japanese.  It  isn’t 

273 


X 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

white.  I’ll  tell  you  what  it  is.  It  is  the  germ  of 
the  mightiest  problem  that  ever  faced  this  state ; 
a problem  that  will  make  the  black  problem  of 
the  South  look  white.”  ^ 

In  Writer’s  Opinion  the  Question  of  Little  Im- 
portance. — In  spite  of  the  strong  feeling  against 
intermarriage  of  white  and  Japanese,  the  writer 
is  of  the  opinion  that  the  question  is  of  very  little 
importance.  Intermarriage  is  not  essential  to  as- 
similation. Possibly  it  is  not  true,  as  Dr.  Eliot 
maintains,  that  the  Japanese  tend  strongly  to 
retain  the  purity  of  their  race.  In  fact,  the  writer 
is  of  the  opinion  that  the  Japanese  have  less  of 
race  antipathy  than  is  exhibited  by  other  races, 
and  that  Mr.  Soyeda  is  right  when  after  referring 
to  cases  of  intermarriage  between  the  Japanese  and 
the  Americans,  he  says  “ there  would  be  many 
more  if  it  were  not  for  the  artificial  and  unjust 
restrictions  placed  by  law  and  usage.”  ^ Some 
Japanese  acquaintances  have  shown  pride  when 
commenting  on  instances  of  intermarriage  in  the 
West.  Yet  it  is  safe  to  say  that  only  in  the  event 
that  assimilation  is  fairly  complete  and  the  relations 
between  the  races  considerably  modified,  will  many 
intermarriages  take  place.  Those  which  might 
then  take  place  should  present  no  particular  prob- 
lem. There  are  now  about  fifty  instances  in  the 

1 Quoted  widely  in  the  press  and  in  Hichborn’s  Story  of  the  Cali- 
fornia Legislature  of  1913,  p.  230.  It  has  been  used  in  numerous 
magazine  articles. 

^ Soyeda  and  Kamiya,  A Survey  of  the  Japanese  Question  in  Cali- 
fornia, p.  9. 


274 


THE  PROBLEM  OF  ASSIMILATION 


West  where  Japanese  men  have  married  American 
women,  and,  with  few  exceptions,  the  couples 
have  lived  happily.  There  are  now  several  off- 
spring, and  in  so  far  as  the  writer  has  had  the 
opportunity  to  observe  them,  they  are  not  deficient 
in  any  respect.  In  physical  appearance  an  Ameri- 
can is  likely  to  regard  them  as  decidedly  Japanese. 
The  Japanese,  on  the  contrary,  are  likely  to  regard 
them  as  decidedly  Caucasian.  It  is  natural  that 
each  should  see  the  variation  from  his  own  type. 
In  non-biological  respects  they  are  American,  for 
what  they  are  until  they  grow  up  depends  chiefly 
upon  the  mother.  Of  course,  were  the  mother 
Japanese  and  the  father  American,  the  result 
would  be  different,  but  that  is  a combination  that 
would  seldom  occur  because  of  the  great  deficiency 
of  immigrant  females.  So  far  as  experience  shows 
there  is  nothing  inherently  bad  in  race  mixture, 
if  it  takes  place  under  normal  conditions,  and 
neither  race  is  generally  regarded  as  inferior  and 
the  offspring  therefore  given  inferior  rank,  as  in  the 
case  of  the  negro.  But  if  the  races  are  not  given 
approximately  equal  rank  and  harmonious  relations 
established,  Japanese- American  marriages  must  con- 
tinue to  be  of  infrequent  occurrence  and  the  number 
of  offspring  few. 


275 


CHAPTER  XI 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 

This  report  may  be  concluded  with  a brief  con- 
sideration of  certain  suggestions  as  to  the  policy 
which  should  be  followed  in  dealing  with  the 
“ Japanese  Problem.” 

Two  Questions  raised  by  the  “ Japanese  Prob- 
lem,” One  relating  to  the  Admission  of  Immi- 
grants, the  Other  to  the  Treatment  accorded  those 
Admitted.  — The  “Japanese  Problem,”  like  the 
problem  connected  with  all  other  immigration, 
raises  two  questions.  The  first  of  these  relates 
to  the  admission  of  immigrants,  the  other  to  the 
treatment  accorded  those  who  secure  admission 
lawfully.  The  second  of  these  raises  many  points 
which  might  be  profitably  discussed.  Only  one 
of  them,  however,  — the  question  of  naturaliza- 
tion, — can  receive  more  than  passing  reference 
in  this  report.  This  final  chapter,  then,  will  be 
devoted  especially  to  the  questions  of  the  admission 
and  naturalization  of  Japanese. 

Conclusions  of  the  Immigration  Commission  as  to 
Asiatic  Immigration.  — The  Immigration  Commis- 
sion gave  extended  consideration  to  the  problem 
of  Asiatic  immigration  and  arrived  at  definite  con- 
clusions as  to  the  policy  which  should  be  followed 
in  admitting  eastern  Asiatics  to  this  country. 

276 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 

Becoming  convinced  that  any  considerable  immi- 
gration of  Asiatic  laborers  was  undesirable,  the 
Commission  made  the  following  recommendations : 

“ The  general  policy  adopted  by  Congress  in  1882 
of  excluding  Chinese  laborers  should  be  continued. 

“ The  question  of  Japanese  and  Korean  immigra- 
tion should  be  permitted  to  stand  without  further 
legislation  so  long  as  the  present  method  of  restric- 
tion (through  the  agreement  relating  to  passports) 
proves  to  be  effective. 

“ An  understanding  should  be  reached  with  the 
British  government  whereby  East  Indian  laborers 
would  be  effectively  prevented  from  entering  the 
United  States.”  ^ 

Though  the  Agreement  is  Effective,  the  Question 
of  Japanese  Immigration  always  under  Discussion. 

— The  administration  of  the  Chinese  exclusion 
law  has  been  attended  by  great  difficulties,  but  any 
suggestion  that  the  general  policy  it  represents 
should  be  departed  from  has  received  no  serious 
consideration.  The  problem  presented  by  the  im- 
migration of  East  Indians  has  been  met  for  several 
years  by  a doubtful  interpretation  and  drastic 
administration  of  the  section  of  the  general  immi- 
gration law  relating  to  persons  likely  to  become 
public  charges.  The  difficulties  and  uncertainty 
connected  with  this  method  of  practical  exclusion 
have  caused  various  special  measures  designed  to 
exclude  East  Indian  laborers  to  receive  favorable 
consideration  from  those  connected  with  the  im- 


‘ Immigration  Commission,  Report,  Vol.  i,  p.  47. 

277 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

migration  service.  Indeed,  these  officials  have 
urged  that  some  exclusion  bill  should  be  adopted.^ 
The  agreement  with  the  Japanese  government 
with  reference  to  Japanese  immigration,  on  the 
other  hand,  has  proved  to  be  effective.  As  stated 
in  the  first  chapter  of  this  report,  as  a restrictive 
measure,  it  has  been  far  more  successful  than  the 
Chinese  exclusion  act.  Its  effectiveness  was  more 
than  once  commented  upon  by  ex-Commissioner 
Keefe,  and  has  been  conceded  by  the  present 
Commissioner  General  of  Immigration.^  Yet  the 
subject  of  Japanese  immigration  has  been  under 
constant  discussion  and  many  have  urged  that  the 
agreement  should  be  superseded  by  legislation. 
Some  have  sought  to  secure  an  extension  of  the 
Chinese  exclusion  law  so  as  to  apply  to  all  Asiatic 
immigrants.  On  the  other  hand,  some  have  ad- 
vocated some  method  that  would  place  Japanese 
immigrants  upon  the  plane  of  those  from  other 
nations  of  the  first  class. 

Exclusion  Bills  in  Congress.  — For  nine  years 
Congress  has  had  bills  before  it  providing  for  the 
exclusion  of  all  Asiatic  laborers.  The  one  most 
seriously  considered  at  the  recent  session  of  Con- 
gress was  the  “ Raker  bill  ” (House  Bill  102). 

* See,  for  example,  the  testimony  given  at  the  Hearings  on  Hindu 
Immigration  before  the  Committee  on  Immigration,  House  of 
Representatives,  Sixty-third  Congress,  second  session  (February 
and  April,  1914). 

2 At  the  Hearings  on  Hindu  Immigration,  April  16,  1914,  in 
answer  to  a question  by  Congressman  Gardner  as  to  whether  the 
agreement  was  working  in  a manner  “substantially  satisfactory,” 
Commissioner  Caminetti  answered,  “I  think  so.”  (Hearings, 
Part  4,  p.  137.) 


278 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


An  effort  to  amend  the  Burnett  bill,  enacted  by  the 
House  at  its  last  session  and  now  awaiting  action 
by  the  Senate,  so  as  to  exclude  all  Asiatic  laborers 
regardless  of  existing  agreements,  was  defeated  d 
The  defeat  is  explained  by  the  preference  of  some 
for  the  present  effective  agreement  with  Japan, 
by  the  fear  of  others  of  giving  affront  to  the  Jap- 
anese government,  and  by  the  opinion  of  still 
others  that  exclusion  should  be  effected  by  the 
enactment  of  the  Raker  bill  as  a separate  measured 
In  the  course  of  the  discussion  it  was  stated  that 
all  of  the  members  of  the  Committee  on  Immigration 
were  opposed  to  the  immigration  of  Japanese  as 
well  as  of  other  Asiatic  laborers.  The  Raker  bill 
was  not  reported,  however.  It  has  been  asserted 
that  it  was  not  reported  because  of  the  attitude  of 
the  Japanese  government. 

A Majority  of  the  People  of  the  West  favor  Ex- 
clusion. Exclusionists  not  all  Laborers.  — My  in- 
vestigations show  that  the  great  majority  in  the 
West  strongly  favor  the  exclusion  of  Asiatic  labor- 
ers. The  people  of  the  West,  in  general,  are  opposed 
to  Asiatic  immigration,  and  those  of  Washington, 

‘ The  Burnett  bill  mentioned  in  section  3,  relating  to  excluded 
classes,  “persons  who  cannot  become  eligible  under  existing  law  to 
become  citizens  of  the  United  States  by  naturalization,  unless  other- 
wise provided  for  by  existing  agreement  as  to  passports,  or  by  treaties, 
conventions,  or  agreements  that  may  hereafter  be  entered  into.” 
Congressman  Hayes  sought  to  amend  by  striking  out  the  part  be- 
ginning with  “unless,”  but  the  amendment  was  defeated  by  a vote 
of  79  for  to  loi  againsti 

“ This  measure  would  add  to  the  classes  excluded  by  section  2 
of  the  existing  immigration  law  all  Asiatic  laborers,  and  provide 
for  the  registration  of  all  Asiatics  now  here  or  herra,fter  admitted. 

279 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

and  especially  those  of  California,  states  to  which 
most  would  go  upon  their  arrival,  very  decidedly  so. 
Lest  there  should  be  any  doubt  as  to  their  position, 
any  exclusion  bill,  such  as  the  Raker  bill,  would 
likely  be  approved  by  a very  large  majority  if 
referred  to  the  electors.  This  is  not  to  say,  how- 
ever, that  a majority  favor  the  enactment  of 
such  a measure  at  the  present  time,  though  it  is 
probable  that  a majority  do.  Of  course  there  are 
a comparatively  few  who  believe  in  non-restriction. 
A few  also  believe  in  a limited  immigration  to  serve 
industrial  ends.  A very  large  number,  possibly  a 
majority,  believe  in  retaining  the  agreement  so 
long  as  it  is  effective.  A considerable  number  — a 
large  percentage  of  those  who  know  of  it  — favor 
Dr.  Gulick’s  plan.^  It  is  probable,  however,  that 
a majority  believe  in  enacting  some  such  measure 
as  the  Raker  bill.  Most  of  them  are  laboring  under 
the  misapprehension  that  the  agreement  is  not 
accomplishing  practical  exclusion.  They  say  that 
Japanese  in  undesirable  number  and  of  classes 
supposed  to  be  excluded  are  coming  in.  This 
impression  is  fixed  in  their  minds.  They  believe 
the  false  reports  that  have  been  made  or  have 
concluded  that  the  increase  in  numbers  in  their 
own  communities  has  been  accompanied  by  cor- 
responding increases  elsewhere.  Some,  in  fact,  a 
very  considerable  number,  assert  that  the  matter 
of  immigration  should  not  be  subject  to  treaty  or 
agreement ; that  the  right  to  control  immigration 
is  a sovereign  right  and  that  this  right  should  be 
1 Discussed  below. 

280 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


exercised,  not  compromised.  A few  express  the 
opinion  that  it  is  only  a question  of  time  until  the 
policy  pursued  by  the  Japanese  government  in 
granting  of  passports  will  break  down  because  of 
the  opposition  with  which  it  is  meeting  and  that 
the  question  should  be  settled  once  for  all  by  ex- 
clusion legislation.  But  while  there  is  a great 
division  of  opinion  with  reference  to  measures, 
those  who  believe  in  greater  restriction  of  Jap- 
anese immigration  than  would  be  effected  under 
the  existing  general  immigration  law  constitute 
an  overwhelming  majority.  Nor  is  this  majority 
made  up  of  labor  unionists  or  laborers  only.  The 
majority  of  business  men,  publicists,  professional 
men,  and  others  are  opposed  to  the  admission  of 
any  considerable  number  of  Japanese  laborers. 

The  Japanese  Government  asserts  its  Willing- 
ness to  continue  the  Present  Effective  Control  of 
Immigration.  — The  Japanese  government  is  ob- 
serving the  letter  and  spirit  of  the  agreement  and 
does  not  for  the  present,  at  any  rate,  ask  for  a 
change  in  it.  In  the  correspondence  with  reference 
to  the  California  alien  land  law,  Baron  Makino, 
His  Imperial  Majesty’s  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
under  date  of  August  23,  1913,  sent  to  Viscount 
Chinda  a telegram  to  be  handed  to  Secretary 
Bryan,  reading  in  part  as  follows : 

“ The  Secretary  of  State,  it  is  observed,  dwells 
at  length  upon  the  subject  of  labor  immigration 
into  the  United  States,  and,  in  the  same  relation, 
he  refers  to  the  action  of  Japan  in  circumstances 
somewhat  analogous  to  those  existing  in  America. 

281 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

The  reason  or  necessity  for  this  exposition  is  not 
understood  by  the  Imperial  Government.  The 
question  of  immigration  has  nothing  whatever  to 
do  with  the  present  controversy,  and  any  reference 
to  it  only  tends  to  obscure  the  real  issue.  This 
announcement  I wish  to  make  very  categorical. 
More  than  four  years  ago,  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment willingly  cooperated  with  the  American  Gov- 
ernment in  adopting  suitable  measures  in  regulation 
of  labor  movements  from  Japan  to  the  United 
States.  The  steps  thus  taken  were  entirely  effica- 
cious, so  that,  during  the  past  three  years,  con- 
siderably more  Japanese  laborers  left  the  United 
States  than  have  entered  that  country.  The 
Government  of  the  United  States  has  recognized 
and  frankly  admitted  the  sufficiency  of  the  measure 
enforced  by  the  Imperial  Government  in  the  matter. 
The  Japanese  Ambassador  to  the  United  States, 
atithe  time  of  the  conclusion  of  the  Treaty  of  1911, 
declared  under  the  authority  of  his  Government 
that  the  Imperial  Government  were  fully  prepared 
to  maintain  with  equal  effectiveness,  the  limitation 
and  control  which  were  then  exerted  in  regulation 
of  the  emigration  of  laborers  to  the  United  States. 
Accordingly,  in  order  to  correct  and  finally  dispel 
the  popular  error,  I wish  to  say  that  there  is  no 
question  whatever  between  Japan  and  the  United 
States  on  the  subject  of  the  Japanese  labor  immi- 
gration into  the  United  States.  The  present  con- 
troversy relates  exclusively  to  the  question  of  the 
treatment  of  the  Japanese  subjects,  who  are  law- 
fully in  the  United  States,  or  may  hereafter  lawfully 
become  resident  therein  consistently  with  the  exist- 
ing regulation.  So  far  as  such  subjects  are  con- 
cerned, the  Imperial  Government  claim  for  them 

282 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


fair  and  equal  treatment,  and  are  unable  either  to 
acquiesce  in  the  unjust  and  obnoxious  discrimination 
complained  of,  or  to  regard  the  question  as  closed 
so  long  as  the  existing  state  of  things  is  permitted 
to  continue.”  ^ 

Yet  the  Agreement  is  objected  to  by  Many  in 
Japan,  and  there  is  a Feeling  that  they  should 
be  treated  as  a First-class  Nation.  The  agree- 
ment of  1907  was  initiated  by  the  Japanese 
government  and  was  adopted  to  meet  the  emer- 
gency raised  by  the  San  Francisco  “ school  order” 
and  other  hostile  measures  and  acts.  The  Japanese 
government  now  states  emphatically  its  entire 
willingness  to  abide  by  its  terms.  Yet  it  may  be 
that  the  question  cannot  be  regarded  as  finally 
settled  in  Japan.  When  the  agreement  was 
adopted  it  was  accepted  by  the  people  as  neces- 
sary, but  many  of  them  hoped  it  would  not  long 
obtain.  It  would  appear  that  they  have  grown 
more  restive  under  it  (partly  because  of  agitation 
for  discriminatory  legislation  in  this  country,  partly 
because  of  the  habit  of  misguided  or  mistaken 
friends  in  laying  everything  at  the  door  of  corrupt 
trade  union  leaders),  and  with  the  development  of 
popular  government,  it  may  be  that  the  policy 
would  sooner  or  later  have  to  be  changed.  The 

1 This  statement  was  shaped  more  or  less  by  a statement  in 
Secretary  Bryan’s  communication  of  July  16,  1913,  in  which  he 
commented  on  the  Imperial  Ordinance  No.  352  of  1899  which 
placed  restrictions  on  immigrant  laborers  to  Japan  and  which  was 
used  in  1907  to  exclude  two  groups  of  Chinese,  one  of  coolie  laborers, 
the  other  of  skilled  artisans,  on  the  ground  that  they  worked  for 
lower  wages  than  the  natives. 


283 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Japanese  feel  humiliated  by  the  position  in  which 
the  agreement  places  them.  They  are  extremely 
self-conscious  in  their  international  relations,  and 
there  is  a widespread  demand  that  in  the  matter 
of  immigration  they  should  be  treated  as  a first- 
class  nation.  Of  many  recent  statements  which 
might  be  quoted  from  the  writings  of  prominent 
Japanese,  the  following  are  typical; 

“In  Japan  the  nation  took  the  agreement  as 
unsatisfactory  but  unavoidable  for  the  time  being 
and  has  ever  since  looked  for  better  days  when 
not  only  her  ‘ face  ’ would  be  saved  but  when  her 
people  would  be  admitted  into  this  republic  (the 
United  States)  as  equal  human  beings.”  “ The 
restriction  should  be  placed  equally  and  fairly  on  all, 
without  any  discrimination  of  race  or  nationality. 
It  is  the  unfair  discrimination  that  is  most  resented 
by  the  Japanese  nation.”  “It  must  also  be  re- 
membered that  unlimited  national  resources  and  a 
boundless  tract  of  land  in  the  United  States  afford 
ample  room  for  a great  number  of  people,  and  it  is 
better  for  her  and  for  the  general  interest  of  hu- 
manity that  her  resources  be  opened  and  utilized.”  ^ 

Radical  Statements  as  to  our  Need  of  Cheap 
Immigrant  Labor.  — Even  more  radical  statements 
have  been  made  in  literature  widely  distributed 
in  the  West  in  behalf  of  thq  Japanese.  In  Japan's 
Message  to  America,  Baron  Kondo,  after  stating 
that  few  white  persons  migrate  to  the  West  and 

1 Quotations  from  A Survey  of  the  Japanese  Question  in  California, 
by  J.  Soyeda  and  T.  Kamiya,  pp.  3,  7,  and  9. 

284 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


that  labor  is  needed  to  exploit  its  resources,  writes 
in  the  course  of  his  contribution  : 

“ The  best  class  of  immigrants  are  those  whose 
labor  is  cheap.  If  only  labor  be  cheap  there  is  no 
need  of  making  the  point  of  race  distinctions.  Now 
the  cheapest  laborers  are  the  Japanese.  As  rail- 
way laborers  the  Japanese  are  being  welcomed  by 
the  railway  companies.  But,  because  Japanese 
labor  is  cheap,  some  of  the  idle  white  laborers  feel 
annoyed  and  attempt  to  have  them  excluded.  This 
is  not  only  unreasonable,  but  it  is  also  unprofitable 
for  the  Americans.  ...  If  they  are  honest  at 
heart  and  work  earnestly,  the  question  of  their 
assimilation  should  be  set  aside.  ...  I earnestly 
hope  . . . they  will  admit  cheap  labor  to  that 
country,  thereby  facilitating  the  opening  up  of  the 
land  and  increasing  the  blessings  of  nature  to  both 
nations.”  ^ 

The  United  States  does  not  favor  Cheap  Labor.  — 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  any  such  hope  as  that  expressed 
in  the  quotation  just  made  will  not  be  realized. 
However  helpful  in  exploiting  resources,  however 
profitable  it  may  be,  cheap  Asiatic  labor  has  not 
appealed  for  long  to  the  people  of  Canada  and 
Australia  any  more  than  to  the  people  of  the  west- 
ern part  of  the  United  States.  The  majority  of 
the  people  are  now  asking,  what  end  is  the  exploi- 
tation of  resources  to  serve?  They  are  thinking, 
and  within  limits  quite  properly,  in  terms  of  living 
and  opportunity  and  not  in  terms  of  national 

1 Japan’s  Message  to  America,  edited  and  compiled  by  Naoichi 
Masaoka,  pp.  39-41. 

285 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

wealth  amassed,  large  profits,  high  land  values, 
and  high  rents.  Most  of  the  recent  legislation 
merely  gives  expression  to  this  thought.  Social 
insurance,  mothers’  pensions,  and  minimum  wage 
legislation  sweeping  over  the  country  are  explained 
only  in  this  way.  Washington,  Oregon,  California, 
Utah,  and  Colorado  are  five  of  the  nine  common- 
wealths that  have  adopted  the  minimum  wage  for 
women  or  for  women  and  minors  within  the  last 
three  years. 

Demand  for  Protection  against  Low  Standards. — 

The  protest  against  low  wages  is  strong ; that 
against  alterable  conditions  which  make  for  low 
wages  should  be  still  stronger.  It  is  becoming 
more  and  more  the  opinion  of  scholars  in  this  coun- 
try that  the  national  welfare  is  to  be  best  pro- 
moted by  looking  carefully  to  the  efficiency  of  and 
opportunity  for  those  near  the  bottom  of  the  in- 
dustrial ladder  and  that  the  best  protective  tariff 
is  that  to  protect  labor.  The  reaction  against 
competition  from  cheap  labor  from  whatever  source 
is  not  only  natural  and  easily  explained  but  has 
cause.  Immigration  involves  a conflict  of  stand- 
ards. Other  things  equal,  the  greater  the  differ- 
ence in  standards  the  greater  the  immigration  to 
the  high  standard  country  and  the  greater  the 
reaction  against  it.  Possibly  through  no  fault  of 
their  own,  the  countries  of  eastern  Asia  are  low 
standard  countries.  The  only  substantial  reason 
why  there  is  desire  to  emigrate  from  them  is  found 
in  the  fact  that  they  are  so.  When  they  cease  to 
be  low  standard  countries  the  chief  motive  to  emi- 

286 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


gration  will  disappear,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the 
chief  objection  to  Asiatic  immigration  — that  is  of 
laborers  — will  cease  to  have  reason  for  the  problem 
will  solve  itself. 

Narrow  Restriction  necessary  to  protect  Stand- 
ards. --Not  only  did  both  Chinese  and  Japanese  la- 
borers underbid  for  work  when  their  admission  was 
not  greatly  restricted  ; their  methods  of  securing  work 
through  “ bosses  ” or  contractors  made  their  com- 
petition more  disastrous  to  others  than  it  would 
have  been.  This  matter,  however,  has  been  fully 
enough  presented  in  the  earlier  part  of  this  report. 
But  it  must  not  be  forgotten  — and  many  have 
forgotten  it  — that  the  absence  of  much  under- 
bidding at  present  and  the  loosening  bonds  of  the 
organization  which  earlier  obtained  argue  nothing 
with  regard  to  a return  to  a less  restrictive  immigra- 
tion policy.  Nor  is  it  to  be  forgotten  that  com- 
petition on  the  basis  of  different  standards  has 
taken  place  in  some  branches  of  business  and  in 
farming.  A narrow  restriction  of  immigration  of 
Asiatics  is  necessary  if  standards  are  not  to  be 
lowered  on  the  Pacific  Coast,  where  most  would 
enter  the  country  and  where  most  of  those  who 
enter  would  remain. 

Restriction  Necessary  for  Other  Reasons  Also.  — 

A narrow  restriction  is  necessary  for  other  reasons. 
Any  considerable  immigration  of  Asiatic  laborers 
would  lead  to  friction  and  discrimination  very  much 
as  it  has  in  the  past.  Instead  of  the  civilization 
of  each  gaining  something  from  the  other,  each  is 
likely  to  lose.  Real  gain  can  come  only  with  har- 

287 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

monious  relations,  but  harmonious  relations  could 
not  be  maintained  if  there  were  any  considerable 
immigration.  Rather  would  injustice  be  visited 
upon  the  immigrant.  If  there  was  friction  and 
misunderstanding,  commercial  relations  would  be 
jeopardized.  Moreover,  as  has  been  stated  in  the 
preceding  chapter,  whatever  the  capacity  of  the 
Japanese  for  assimilation,  they  would  be  encysted 
in  and  not  adequately  assimilated  to  the  popula- 
tion of  the  West  if  any  large  number  came  in  and 
complicated  still  more  the  situation  that  now 
exists. 

Both  Parties  would  be  Injured  by  any  Con- 
siderable Immigration.  — All  that  has  been  said 
comes  simply  to  this : injury  would  come  to  both 
parties  in  the  event  that  immigration  brought  any 
considerable  number  of  Asiatics  to  our  shores  to 
share  the  soil  with  the  elements  in  the  white  popu- 
lation of  the  West.  Any  immigration  policy 
adopted  must  be  based  upon  a recognition  of 
this  fact.  Otherwise  it  will  only  create  problems ; 
it  will  not  solve  them.  It  would  seem  that  the 
Japanese  government  recognizes  this  fact.  Cer- 
tainly most  of  the  Japanese  here  recognize  it.  So 
do  most  of  their  friends.  All  should  do  so. 

Any  Claim  made  to  our  Superior  Resources 
Ineffective.  — Nor  will  any  appeal  made  on  the 
ground  of  difference  in  opportunity  offered  by  the 
natural  resources  of  Japan  and  those  of  the  United 
States  be  effective.  It  is  true  of  course  that  Japan’s 
resources  are  limited  and  inferior  to  ours.  The 
natural  increase  of  her  population  has  been  rapid 

288 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


during  the  last  generation,^  and  an  outlet  must  be 
found  by  emigration  or  by  the  development  of 
industries  to  supplement  agriculture  and  other 
extractive  industries  in  which  the  majority  of  those 
gainfully  occupied  are  engaged.  While  nations 
are  struggling  for  prestige  and  power  — as  Japan  is 
now  doing  unofficially  by  creating  a demand  for 
domestic  as  against  foreign  products  — they  will 
be  slow  to  share  their  resources  freely  with  others 
unless  they  can  reckon  on  gain  by  so  doing.  It  may 
be  argued  “ that  unlimited  natural  resources  and  a 
boundless  tract  of  land  in  the  United  States  afford 
ample  room  for  a great  number  of  people,  and  it  is 
better  for  her  and  for  the  general  interest  of  hu- 
manity that  her  resources  be  opened  and  utilized,”  2 
but  any  implied  claim  will  be  passed  upon  chiefly 
with  reference  to  whether  “ it  is  better  for  her.” 

But  to  Enact  an  Exclusion  Law  would  be  Illogical 
and  an  Affront  to  Japan.  — So  much  with  reference 
to  the  position  of  those  who  would  advocate  a con- 
siderably greater  degree  of  freedom  of  immigration 
than  is  now  accorded.  Looking  at  the  other  side 
of  the  matter,  those  members  of  Congress  and 
others  who  believe  in  replacing  the  agreement 


1 The  census  figures  for  the  Japanese  population  forj  the  years 
1888  and  1908  were  as  follows ; 


Year 

Male 

Female 

Total 

1888 

20,008,000 

19,599,000 

39,607,000 

1908 

25,046,380 

24,542,424 

49,588,804 

Thus  the  average 

annual  increase  was  1.26  per  cent. 

The  estimated 

population  in  1913  was  52,985,423.  That  of  Korea  was  14,827,101. 

^ Quoted  from  Soyeda  and  Kamiya,  A Survey  of  the  Japanese 
Question  in  California,  p.  9. 

tJ 


289 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

with  Japan  by  a discriminatory  law,  such  as  the 
Chinese  exclusion  act,  should  recognize  the  fact 
that  there  is  no  problem  of  Japanese  immigration 
to  be  solved  in  that  way.  The  agreement  has  been 
more  effective  than  the  Chinese  exclusion  act. 
There  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  if  it  is  observed 
in  the  future  as  it  has  been  in  the  past,  it  will  be 
found  to  be  more  effective  than  any  exclusion  law 
not  more  drastic  in  its  provisions  than  the  Chinese 
exclusion  act.  Certainly  the  control  of  immigra- 
tion under  the  agreement  with  Japan  has  been 
more  effective  than  our  administration  of  an  ex- 
clusion act  would  be  with  less  cooperation  on  the 
part  of  that  government.  It  would  be  illogical  to 
enact  an  exclusion  law  just  so  long  as  the  agreement 
is  effective.  It  is  illogical  to  enact  any  law  unless 
there  is  a problem  to  be  solved  by  so  doing.  It 
would  be  unjust  to  enact  an  exclusion  law  so  long 
as  Japan  is  willing  and  capable  of  enforcing  the 
terms  of  the  agreement.  Moreover,  to  enact  such 
a law  so  long  as  the  Japanese  government  faith- 
fully observes  the  agreement  entered  into  in  1907, 
would  be  too  serious  an  affront  to  offer  a people 
jealous  of  its  honor  and  determined  to  command 
the  treatment  due  a first-class  nation. 

Control  under  a General  Immigration  Law  De- 
sirable. — Thus,  it  is  maintained  on  the  one  hand 
that  no  policy  can  be  reasonably  adopted  which 
would  permit  any  considerable  immigration  of 
eastern  Asiatic  laborers  across  the  Pacific  to  reside  in 
the  Pacific  Coast  states,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  that 
the  present  agreement  should  not  be  replaced  by 

290 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


an  exclusion  law.  Yet,  if  a general  immigration 
law  could  be  framed  to  embrace  immigrants  of 
all  races  and  to  avoid  the  invidious  distinctions 
implied  in  restrictive  agreements,  exclusion  acts, 
and  discriminating  administration  of  the  existing 
general  immigration  law,  it  should  be  adopted. 
The  existing  agreement  offends  many  Japanese 
and  it  might  break  down,  the  exclusion  act  offends 
China  though  in  less  degree,  and  the  exclusion  of 
East  Indian  laborers  under  a strained  and  doubtful 
interpretation  of  the  general  immigration  law 
brings  protest  from  the  members  of  that  race. 
Dr.  Gulick’s  suggestions  for  a general  immigration 
law  are  designed  to  remove  offense  and  to  aid  in 
solving  the  problem  connected  with  a swollen 
immigration  from  South  and  East  European  coun- 
tries. The  writer  is  of  the  opinion  that  such  a 
measure  as  Dr.  Gulick  suggests,  modified  somewhat, 
should  be  adopted  unless  it  would  present  serious 
difficulties  in  administration. 

Dr.  Gulick’s  Plan.  — Dr.  Gulick’s  plan  for  a 
general  immigration  law  which  would  replace  the 
existing  general  law,  the  agreement  with  Japan  and 
the  Chinese  exclusion  act,  may  be  stated  in  outline 
in  his  own  words  : ^ 

“ A new  general  immigration  law  is  needed,  which 
shall  apply  impartially  to  all  races.  We  must 
abandon  all  differential  Asiatic  treatment,  even 
as  regards  immigration.  The  danger  of  an  over- 
whelming Oriental  immigration  can  be  obviated 

1 The  following  statement  is  quoted  from  Dr.  Gulick’s  The  Ameri- 
can- Japanese  Problem,  pp.  284-286. 

291 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

by  a general  law  allowing  a maximum  annual  im- 
migration from  any  land  of  a certain  fixed  per- 
centage of  those  from  that  land  already  here  and 
naturalized.  The  valid  principle  on  which  such  a 
law  would  rest  is  the  fact  that  newcomers  from  any 
land  enter  and  become  assimilated  to  our  life 
chiefly  through  the  agency  of  those  from  that  land 
already  here.  These  know  the  languages,  customs, 
and  ideals  of  both  nations.  Consequently,  the 
larger  the  number  already  assimilated,  the  larger 
the  number  of  those  who  can  be  wisely  admitted 
year  by  year.  The  same  percentage  rate  would 
permit  of  great  differences  in  actual  numbers  from 
different  lands. 

“ By  way  of  illustrating  this  suggestion,  consider 
the  following  outline  of  a general  immigration  law : 

" The  maximum  number  of  immigrants  in  a single 
year  from  any  nation,  race,  or  group  having  a single 
‘ mother  tongue  ’ shall  be ; 

“ Five  per  cent  of  those  from  the  same  land  who 
are  already  naturalized  American  citizens,  includ- 
ing their  American-born  children. 

“ In  addition  to  these  there  shall  also  be  admitted, 
from  any  land,  all  who  are  returning  to  America, 
having  at  some  previous  time  had  a residence  here 
of  not  less  than  three  years. 

“ All  immediate  dependent  relatives  of  those  who 
have  had  a residence  here  of  not  less  than  three 
years. 

“ All  who  have  had  an  education  in  their  own 
land  equivalent  to  the  American  high  school,  with 
not  less  than  three  years’  study  of  some  foreign 
tongue. 

“ In  the  application  of  these  provisions,  individ- 
uals who  come  as  bona-fide  travelers,  government 

292 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


officials,  students  — in  a word,  all  who  are  provided 
for  by  funds  from  their  native  land  — should  not 
be  counted  as  immigrants ; but  all  merchants,  pro- 
fessionals, students,  and  all  others,  even  though 
not  technically  laborers,  who  yet  depend  on  their 
own  efforts  in  this  land  for  a living  should  be  so 
reckoned.” 

A Modified  Plan  Suggested.  — Varying  some- 
what from  Dr.  Gulick’s  suggestions,  the  writer 
feels  that  a bill  modifying  the  existing  general 
immigration  law  in  the  following  respects  and 
applying  to  Asiatics  as  well  as  others,  should  be 
given  serious  consideration  by  Congress.  Include 
as  ” immigrants  ” all  subjects  of  a foreign  power 
who  apply  for  admission  except  aliens  who  have 
resided  in  the  United  States  but  have  been  out 
of  the  country  not  to  exceed  three  years,  bona-fide 
travelers,  government  officials,  and  students  not 
dependent  upon  labor  in  this  country  for  their 
support.  Amend  the  existing  law  so  that  except 
in  the  case  of  Canada,  Newfoundland,  Mexico,  and 
Cuba,^  the  number  of  immigrants  admitted  in 
any  one  year  shall  not  exceed  5 per  cent  of  the  total 
of  those  who  had  taken  their  ” second  papers  ” 
and  the  native  born  of  one  or  both  parents  born 
in  the  given  country,  as  recorded  in  the  Census  of 
1910.  Provide,  however,  that  the  maximum  num- 
ber in  no  case  shall  be  less  than  1000  in  order  that 
immigration  from  new  countries  shall  not  be  unduly 

‘ This  exception  is  dictated  by  administrative  considerations. 
Moreover,  the  Canadians  and  the  people  of  the  United  States  are 
almost  one  people,  living  under  similar  conditions  and  with  the  same 
institutions. 


293 


the  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

restricted.  Wives,  children  under  sixteen  years  of 
age,  and  other  dependent  relatives  should  not  be 
counted  in  reckoning  the  number  to  be  admitted. 
Only  those  immigrants  should  be  admitted  who 
come  with  a proper  certificate  signed  and  numbered 
by  a designated  officer  of  the  American  government 
residing  in  the  country  from  which  they  emigrate. 
Except  in  the  case  of  subjects  of  Canada  and  Mexico, 
immigrants  should  be  permitted  to  land  only  at 
seaports  where  immigration  stations  are  provided. 
Each  one  admitted  should  be  registered  and  any 
immigrant  found  unregistered  in  the  United  States 
should  be  liable  to  deportation.  The  Commis- 
sioner-General of  Immigration  or  some  other  execu- 
tive officer  should  be  empowered,  with  the  consent 
of  the  President,  to  waive,  by  order  properly  issued, 
the  limitation  on  the  number  of  any  race  emigrating 
from  a country  because  of  political  or  religious 
persecution.  The  numbers  fixed  upon  in  the  law 
should  obtain  (subject  to  the  exception  just  noted) 
indefinitely  and  until  changed  by  act  of  Congress.^ 

The  General  Effect  of  Such  a Measure.  — While 
it  is  impossible  to  make  comparisons  between  the 
data  presented  by  the  Census  of  1910  and  the  im- 
migrants admitted  to  the  United  States  in  1914 
to  show  accurately  just  how  restrictive  such  a 
measure  as  that  suggested  would  be,  its  general 
effect  is  roughly  shown  by  the  following  table : 

1 To  avoid  difficulties  which  would  arise  when  a new  Census  was 
taken  and  to  avoid  any  implied  promise  to  permit  larger  numbers 
to  be  admitted  when  the  total  used  as  a basis  in  establishing  the 
numbers  fixed  upon  in  the  law,  had  increased  by  naturalization  or  by 
native  birth. 


294 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


I 

COUNTEY 

II 

No. 

Foreign 
Born 
Males  21 

AND  OVER 

in  U.  S. 

III 

No.  OF 
SAME 

Nat- 

ural- 

ized 

IV 

No.  or  Na- 
tive Born 
or  Foreign 
Parentage 

V 

Total  or 
Cols.  Ill 

and  rv 

VI 

Possi- 

ble 

Annual 

Immi- 

gration 

other 

THAN 

Ex- 

cepted 

Classes 

VII 

Immi- 
grant 
Aliens 
Admit- 
ted IN 
1914 

A.  Northwest 
Europe  — 
Great  Britain 
and  Ireland 

1,211,182 

770,094 

5,163,277 

5.933,371 

296,669 

73,417 

Germany  . . 

1,278,677 

889,007 

5,781,437 

6,670,444 

333.522 

35,734 

Norway  . . 

213,042 

121,651 

575,241 

696,892 

34,845 

8,329 

Sweden  . . 

349,022 

219,057 

699,032 

981,089 

45.905 

14,800 

Denmark  . . 

102,398 

63,068 

218,443 

281,511 

14,076 

6,262 

Netherlands 

S9>7S2 

33,922 

173,521 

207,443 

10,372 

6,321 

Belgium  . . 

27,619 

11,869 

39,867 

51,736 

2,587 

5,763 

France  . . 

59,661 

29,613 

175,153 

204,766 

10,238 

9,296 

Switzerland.  . 

69,241 

42,760 

176,816 

219,576 

10,979 

4,211 

B.  South  & East 
Europe  — 
Portugal  . . 

28,693 

7,141 

53,499 

60,640 

3,032 

10,898 

Spain  . . . 

14,170 

2,318 

11,157 

13.475 

1,000 

7.591 

Italy  . . . 

712,812 

126,523 

755,290 

881,813 

44,091 

283,738 

Russia  . . 

737,120 

192,264 

938,897 

1,131,161 

36,553 

255,650 

Finland  . . 
Austria  . . 

70,716 

609,347 

21,669 

149,914 

81,357 

826,635 

103,026 

976,549 

5,151 

48,827 

134,831 

Hungary  . . 

255,844 

36,610 

204,627 

241,237 

10,619 

143,321 

Roumania 

27,835 

8,014 

21,801 

29.815 

1.491 

4,032 

Bulgaria,  Ser- 
via  & Monte- 
negro . . 

17,524 

821 

1,234 

2,055 

1,000 

9,189 

Greece 

74,975 

4,946 

8,401 

13,347 

1,000 

35,832 

Turkey  in 

Europe  . . 

22,788 

1,474 

3,093 

4,567 

1,000 

8,199 

C.  China  & Japan 
China  . . . 

Japan  . . . 

(g) 

22,130  (b) 

24,391  W 

22,130  (a) 

24,391 

1,107 

1,220 

2,502 

8,929 

(а)  Number  naturalized  in  Hawaiian  Islands,  unknown  but  few. 

(б)  Native  bom  in  Hawaiian  Islands  included' — Chinese  7,195, 
Japanese  19,889. 


295 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

As  stated  above,  a comparison  of  columns  VI  and 
VII  of  this  table  shows  only  roughly  the  restrictive 
effects  of  such  a general  immigration  law.  To  show 
the  effects  accurately  the  wives,  children  under  six- 
teen years  of  age,  and  dependent  relatives  would  have 
to  be  deducted  from,  and  the  non-immigrant  aliens 
other  than  travelers,  officials,  students,  and  aliens  re- 
turning to  the  United  States  within  three  years  after 
leaving  a residence  acquired  here,  would  have  to  be 
added  to  the  figures  given  in  column  VII.  More- 
over, allowance  would  have  to  be  made  for  those  in 
Hawaii  of  foreign  parentage  in  setting  down  the  num- 
bers in  column  VI,  and  that  has  been  done  only  in  the 
case  of  the  J apanese  and  Chinese.  On  the  whole  the 
effect  would  be  less  restrictive  than  would  appear 
from  comparing  the  figures  given.  In  the  case  of 
Northwest  Europeans,  there  would  be  no  restric- 
tion except  possibly  in  one  or  two  cases.  With 
South  and  East  Europeans,  on  the  other  hand, 
there  would  be  considerable  restriction  in  every 
case  and  in  some  cases  the  restriction  would  be 
drastic.  In  the  case  of  Chinese  and  Japanese 
there  would  be  no  real  change.  Upon  examination 
of  the  details  relating  to  immigrants  of  those  races 
admitted  in  1913  it  is  found  that  105  Chinese  and 
980  Japanese  other  than  those  in  the  excepted 
classes  provided  for  in  the  suggested  plan,  were 
admitted  to  the  United  States  and  Hawaii.^  The 
maximum  number  (1000)  of  East  Indians  who 
might  be  admitted  would  be  larger  than  the  num- 
ber (160)  for  the  fiscal  year  ended  June  30,  1914. 

1 Details  for  the  year  1913-14  are  not  yet  at  hand. 

296 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


Widespread  Feeling  in  the  West  that  Immigra- 
tion from  South  and  East  Europe  should  be  Re- 
stricted. — No  doubt  protests  would  be  numerous 
in  the  East  against  such  a plan  because  of  its  re- 
strictive effects  upon  immigration  from  certain 
European  countries.  Many  in  the  West  also 
would  protest  for  that  reason.  Yet  the  writer  in 
the  course  of  his  investigations  found  a widespread 
feeling  that  the  immigration  from  South  and  East 
Europe  is  undesirably  large  and  that  it  should  be 
restricted.  It  is  very  generally  felt  that  with  the 
opening  of  the  Panama  Canal  undesirably  larger 
numbers  of  people  from  the  Mediterranean  coun- 
tries will  immigrate  directly  to  the  Pacific  Coast 
states  when  the  present  war  is  over.  California 
three  years  ago  began  to  organize  to  meet  the 
problem.  Two  years  ago  a Commission  of  Im- 
migration and  Housing  was  created  to  prepare  for 
it.  It  would  appear,  however,  that  no  method  has 
been  found  which  promises  to  solve  to  any  great 
extent  the  problems  which  will  arise  if  large  num- 
bers are  admitted.  A year  ago  (November  7-8, 
1913)  a Western  Labor  Immigration  Conference 
was  held  at  Seattle  at  which  resolutions  favoring 
the  literacy  test  and  other  measures  which  would 
restrict  the  volume  of  immigration  from  Europe, 
as  well  as  a resolution  in  favor  of  a general  Asiatic 
exclusion  law  were  adopted.^  Resolutions  adopted 
by  other  public  and  semipublic  bodies  likewise  give 
expression  to  the  fear  of  an  unduly  large  immigration. 

* Printed  Proceedings  of  Western  Immigration  Conference  held 
in  Labor  Temple,  Seattle,  Wash.,  Nov.  7-8,  1913. 

297 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Various  Opinions  as  to  Such  a Measure  as  that 
suggested  Above.  — In  the  course  of  my  investiga- 
tions, care  was  exercised  to  secure  from  the  many 
persons  conferred  with,  representing  all  classes, 
their  opinion  of  some  such  measure  as  that  sug- 
gested by  Dr.  Gulick  as  a substitute  for  the  agree- 
ment with  Japan  and  the  Chinese  exclusion  law. 
Needless  to  say,  most  had  not  heard  of  it,  and 
when  it  was  outlined  could  have  no  well-matured 
opinion  concerning  it.  Japanese  officials,  as  a 
rule,  reflected  the  point  of  view  of  their  government 
and  stated  that  the  question  of  immigration  was 
not  at  issue.  Most  of  them,  however,  thought 
well  of  the  plan.  Most  secretaries  of  Japanese 
associations  and  others  occupying  similar  posi- 
tions approved  it.  So  do  most  of  the  Japanese 
business  men,  though  it  is  doubtless  true  that  they 
very  generally  desire  as  many  of  their  countrymen 
admitted  as  possible  “ without  giving  rise  to 
trouble.”  ^ Only  here  and  there  was  one  found 
who  argued  for  a large  immigration  and  who  ex- 
pressed the  opinion  that  the  agitation  should  be 
ignored  until  such  time  as  it  should  “ die  out.” 
Most  of  those  actively  concerned  in  furthering 
the  welfare  of  the  Japanese  and  in  bringing  about 
closer  relations  between  Japan  and  the  United 
States,  favor  some  such  plan  as  that  presented 
by  Dr.  Gulick.  They  recognize  that  it  would  be 
very  restrictive  of  Japanese  immigration  but  main- 
tain that  there  must  be  restriction.  Yet  a majority 

1 This  expression  was  used  over  and  over.  The  Japanese  here 
want  above  all  else  to  be  treated  as  equals  and  to  avoid  friction. 

298 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


feel  that  to  agitate  for  a change  in  the  immigration 
law  at  present  may  be  unwise.  The  Japan  Society 
of  America,  for  example,  has  decided  for  the  present 
to  advocate  only  an  amendment  of  the  naturaliza- 
tion law  so  that  foreign-born  Japanese  may  become 
American  citizens.  A considerable  number  of  their 
friends,  however,  oppose  Dr.  Gulick’s  plan  because 
it  “ takes  advantage  ” of  the  small  number  of 
native  born  and  the  fact  that  the  Japanese  have 
not  been  permitted  to  become  naturalized,  and, 
while  general  and  equal  in  terms,  is  in  fact  dis- 
criminatory. At  Seattle  and  Denver  and  in  a few 
other  places  of  less  importance,  some  trade-union- 
ists favored  Dr.  Gulick’s  plan  when  it  was  explained 
to  them.  They  thought  it  was  adequate  and 
would  make  no  particular  change  in  the  situation 
so  far  as  numbers  were  concerned.  In  California, 
however,  every  trade-unionist  conferred  with  de- 
manded a general  Asiatic  exclusion  law. 

Merits  of  the  Plan.  — But  whatever  the  division 
of  opinion,  taking  all  things  other  than  those 
connected  with  administration  into  consideration, 
the  writer  believes  Dr.  Gulick’s  plan,  changed 
in  the  respects  indicated  above,  has  distinct  merit. 
The  restrictions  proposed  are  based  primarily  on 
citizenship.  This  indicates  fairly  well  the  number 
in  the  country  who  will  come  in  close  contact  with 
the  new  immigrants  and  assist  in  their  assimilation. 
Yet  the  writer  is  not  one  of  those  who  believe  that 
assimilation  in  the  sense  in  which  it  is  commonly 
used  is  “ the  final  test.”  The  country’s  need  of 
labor,  the  retardation  of  improvement  in  and  the 

299 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


deterioration  of  labor  conditions,  the  distribution 
of  the  immigrants,  the  effect  on  all  of  our  social 
institutions,  the  effect  on  opportunity  in  the 
future,  and  the  effect  on  the  character  of  the 
American  race  itself  must  all  be  given  due  con- 
sideration. The  writer  believes,  however,  that 
all  such  considerations  combine  to  give  merit  to 
the  plan  above  outlined,  and  it  has  the  incidental 
advantage  of  bringing  all  races  under  one  law  and 
avoiding  obvious  discrimination. 

There  is  a General  Immigration  Problem.  — 
Space  cannot  be  devoted  in  this  report  to  a dis- 
cussion in  detail  of  the  general  immigration  problem 
as  it  presents  itself.  The  best  students  of  it  are 
generally  agreed  that  radical  restriction  is  needed. 
They  are  generally  agreed  that  there  is  an  “ over- 
supply of  unskilled  labor  in  the  industries  of  the 
country  as  a whole,”  and  a condition  of  retarded 
improvement  with  some  deterioration  of  labor 
conditions  which  ” demands  legislation  restricting 
the  further  admission  of  such  unskilled  labor.”  ^ 
They  are  generally  agreed,  moreover,  that  this 
problem  is  closely  connected  with  the  fact  that 
more  than  four  fifths  of  the  European  immigration 
is  from  the  southern  and  eastern  countries,  which 
have  the  lowest  standards,  and  the  immigrants 
from  which  are  most  congested  in  their  occupa- 
tions and  residence  as  compared  to  the  distribution 
of  the  native  born.  All  agree  that  in  the  case  of 
the  ” newer  immigration  ” there  are  greater  dif- 

^ Quotations  are  from  the  Conclusions  and  Recommendations  of 
the  Immigration  Commission. 


300 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


ferences  in  institutions  and  customs  than  in  the 
case  of  the  immigrants  from  Northwestern  Europe 
to  be  overcome  in  the  process  of  assimilation. 
Most  students  are  agreed  that  the  South  and 
East  Europeans  taken  as  a whole  are  less  sensitive 
than  the  Northwest  Europeans  to  the  American 
environment,  and  that  a situation  has  developed 
in  the  industrial  centers  of  the  East  in  which 
assimilation  proceeds  in  halting  and  uncertain 
fashion  and  out  of  which  numerous  problems  of 
local  government,  administration,  and  institutions 
develop.  Some  argue  that  a wider  distribution  is 
all  that  is  required,  but  it  is  probably  true  that  it 
would  serve  to  lower  temporarily  the  content  of 
the  labor  reservoirs  and  then  to  increase  the  inflow 
from  abroad.  Though  as  yet  there  has  been  no 
great  problem  of  dependency  connected  with  the 
“ newer  immigration,”  it  may  be  expected  to  follow 
in  time.  A proper  use  of  the  data  available  shows 
that  some  prominent  elements  in  the  immigration 
from  South  and  East  European  countries  complicate 
and  make  more  difficult  the  problem  of  maintaining 
law  and  order. 

Restriction  Needed.  — Restriction  of  immigra- 
tion is  needed.  Upon  the  close  of  the  present 
war,  it  will  in  all  probability  be  sorely  needed.  If 
proper  provision  is  made  for  those  persecuted,  the 
restrictions  imposed  should  discriminate  in  their 
effects  against  the  races  of  South  and  East  Europe. 
They  should  discriminate  in  their  effects  still  more 
against  immigrant  laborers  from  Asia,  who  without 
restriction  are  the  cheapest  and  frequently  the  best 

301 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

organized  laborers  and  have  the  most  injurious 
effects  in  competition,  who  institutionally  and  in 
thought  have  more  to  be  overcome  in  assimilation, 
and  who  are  handicapped  by  an  obvious  differ- 
ence in  color.  Moreover,  the  natural  stopping 
place  of  the  eastern  Asiatics  is  on  the  Pacific 
Coast,  so  that  the  effects  of  their  immigration  are 
concentrated  upon  a limited  territory.  The  plan 
suggested  is  believed  to  have  merit  in  that  it  is 
restrictive,  is  general  and  non-discriminatory  in 
form,  and  would  discriminate  only  reasonably  in  its 
effects. 

But  once  admitted  there  should  be  no  Dis- 
crimination in  the  Treatment  of  Immigrants.  — 

The  Japanese  problem  involves,  also,  the  question 
of  the  treatment  accorded  those  who  are  here  now 
and  those  who  are  to  be  admitted.  Passing  over 
the  constructive  aspects  which  have  been  woefully 
neglected  by  the  United  States  in  dealing  with  its 
immigrants,  it  may  be  stated  as  a broad  principle, 
that  the  question  of  who  should  be  admitted  being 
properly  settled,  all  persons  lawfully  in  this  country 
should  be  accorded  the  same  rights  and  privileges 
under  the  law,  when  properly  qualified  to  exercise 
them.  In  the  ownership  and  disposition  of  prop- 
erty, in  business  engaged  in,  in  taxation,  in  school 
facilities,  and  the  like,  there  should  be  no  discrim- 
ination between  races.  Of  course  if  some  foreign- 
born  children  are  much  older  than  others  of  the 
same  degree  of  advancement  or  are  badly  handi- 
capped in  the  use  of  English,  it  is  quite  proper  to 
provide  separate  schools  for  them.  This  is  merely 

302 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


adapting  methods  to  a desirable  object  and  does 
not  involve  discrimination  because  of  race. 

The  Federal  Naturalization  Law  Discriminates. 
— In  one  important  respect  our  federal  law  dis- 
criminates on  racial  grounds.  The  naturalization 
law  as  amended  in  1875  provides  for  the  naturaliza- 
tion of  “ aliens  being  free  white  persons  and  . . . 
aliens  of  African  nativity  and  . . . persons  of 
African  descent.”  It  provides  negatively  ” that 
hereafter  no  state  court  or  court  of  the  United 
States  shall  admit  Chinese  to  citizenship.”  Thus 
the  Chinese  were  definitely  discriminated  against 
by  Congress.  The  Japanese  without  intentional 
discrimination,  coming  after  the  naturalization  law 
was  given  shape,  have  been  placed  under  the  same 
disability,  for  not  being  free  white  persons,  or  of 
African  nativity  or  of  African  descent,  the  courts 
have  generally  held  that  they  are  ineligible  for 
naturalization.^  Advantage  has  recently  been 


1 It  appears  that  no  case  has  yet  been  decided  by  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court.  A few  Japanese  have  been  permitted  to 
take  “first  papers”  and  a few  to  become  naturalized,  but  generally 
the  courts  have  declared  them  to  be  ineligible  for  naturalization. 
The  following  are  four  of  the  leading  cases  holding  Japanese  in- 
eligible for  naturalization ; 

In  re  Saito  (62  Fed.,  126) : The  court  held  that  Japanese,  like 
Chinese,  belong  to  the  Mongolian  race,  and  so  are  not  entitled  to 
naturalization,  not  being  included  within  the  terms  “white  persons.” 

In  re  Buntaro  Kumagai  (163  Fed.,  922,  Dist.  Ct.  Washington, 
1908) : Held  that  honorable  discharge  from  the  military  service  of 
the  United  States  does  not  extend  the  right  to  become  naturalized 
to  a person  of  the  Japanese  race. 

In  re  Knight  (171  Fed.,  299,  D.  C.  E.  D.,  New  York,  1909) : 
A petitioner  bom  on  British  schooner  in  the  Yellow  Sea,  father  an 
Englishman,  mother  half  Chinese  and  half  Japanese,  and  in  the 

303 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

taken  of  this  disability  in  Arizona  and  California 
in  giving  form  to  laws  relating  to  the  ownership 
and  leasing  of  land  and  Japanese  have  been  de- 
prived of  rights  they  had  previously  enjoyed d 
The  struggle  incidental  to  the  enactment  of  the 
discriminatory  law  in  California  brought  the  ques- 
tion of  the  naturalization  of  Japanese  to  the  fore, 
and  now  the  Japanese  in  the  United  States,  in  the 
language  of  one  of  them,  regard  the  right  to  become 
naturalized  as  “ the  crux  of  the  whole  matter.” 

Japanese  anxious  for  the  Right  of  Naturaliza- 
tion. — It  will  be  recalled  that  the  California  alien 
land  act  makes,  by  implication,  a distinction  be- 
tween those  aliens  who  are  eligible  to  naturalization 
and  those  who  are  not,  and  while  conferring  the 
same  rights  over  real  property  upon  the  former 
as  are  enjoyed  by  citizens,  limits  the  rights  of  the 
latter  to  those  conferred  by  treaty  with  the  ex- 
ception that  they  may  lease  land  for  agricultural 
purposes  for  periods  not  exceeding  three  years.^ 
The  existing  treaty  of  commerce  and  navigation 
does  not  confer  upon  Japanese  the  right  to  pur- 


service  of  the  United  States  Navy  since  1882,  was  denied  citizenship 
because  not  a “free  white  person.” 

In  re  Takiyi  Yamashita  (30  Wash.,  234,  70  Pac.  Rep.,  482,  1902). 
Application  for  admission  to  the  bar  denied  on  the  ground  that 
petitioner  was  not  entitled  to  naturalization,  not  being  a “free  white 
person,”  and  judgment  of  naturalization  previously  given  in  the 
Superior  Court  held  to  be  void. 

The  status  of  the  Japanese  has  been  discussed  by  Roy  Malcom 
in  the  California  Outlook,  May  31,  1913,  pp.  8 et  seq. 

^ See  Chapter  VIII,  where  this  legislation  is  discussed. 

^ For  discussion,  see  Chapter  VIII.  For  the  text  of  the  law,  see 
Appendix  B. 


304 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


chase,  hold  (with  certain  exceptions),  or  transfer 
upon  death  to  persons  not  eligible  to  citizenship, 
land  of  any  description.  In  the  prolonged  diplo- 
matic correspondence  growing  out  of  this  dis- 
criminatory legislation,  the  fact  that  Japanese 
were  not  accorded  the  same  rights  of  citizenship 
as  were  accorded  to  the  subjects  of  other  first- 
class  nations  was  mentioned  as  “ hurtful  to  their 
just  national  susceptibility.”  ^ While  equal  treat- 
ment for  its  subjects  in  this  respect  was  not  urged 
by  the  Japanese  government  and  while  it  was 
stated  that  “ the  question  of  naturalization  is  a 
political  problem  of  national,  not  international, 
concern,”  a second  question  has  in  a way  been 
officially  raised.  The  Japanese  are  most  anxious 
for  the  right  to  become  naturalized  and  the  Japan 
Society  of  America  has  decided  to  conduct  an  edu- 
cational campaign  to  that  end.^ 

Why  Naturalization  is  Wanted. — Those  who  de- 
sire a change  in  the  naturalization  law  are  of  the  opin- 
ion that  if  a considerable  number  of  Japanese  had 
the  right  to  vote,  legislative  bodies  would  cease  to 
discriminate  against  them  in  laws  and  ordinances 
adopted.  Of  most  immediate  interest  is  the  fact  that 
the  discriminatory  land  laws  of  Arizona  and  Cali- 
fornia would  lose  their  force  if  all  aliens,  or  Japanese 
aliens,  were  made  eligible  to  citizenship  by  amend- 
ment of  the  federal  law.  Most  important  of  all  in 

* By  Baron  Chinda  in  a communication  to  the  Secretary  of  State, 
Jime  4,  1913. 

^ The  Japan  Society  of  America  has  a membership  of  160  or  more. 
Between  30  and  40  are  prominent  Japanese,  the  others  Americans. 
Nearly  all  live  in  or  near  San  Francisco. 

305 


X 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

creating  a desire  for  a change  in  the  law  is  the  feeling 
that  the  existing  naturalization  law  does  the  Jap- 
anese an  injustice  and  robs  them  of  an  opportunity 
to  share  fully  in  the  institutional  life  of  their 
adopted  counti*y.  Moreover,  it  withholds  from 
them  a privilege  extended  to  all  aliens  in  Japan 
and  a privilege  the  Japanese  government  would 
permit  them  to  enjoy,  for  it  allows  expatriation. 
And,  again,  it  withholds  from  them  a privilege 
they  enjoy  in  Canada,  where  the  same  immigration 
situation  obtains.  In  British  Columbia  and  the 
neighboring  provinces  a few  thousand  Japanese 
have  become  naturalized,  the  majority  of  them 
incidental  to  obtaining  licenses  as  fishermen.  In 
British  Columbia,  it  may  be  added,  however,  that 
they  are  not  given  the  right  to  vote.^ 

Japanese  Opinion  as  voiced  by  Mr.  Kawakami. 
— The  way  the  J apanese  feel  about  the  political 
disability  under  which  they  labor  in  this  country 
is  well  shown  by  the  following  quotation  from 
Mr.  Kawakami’s  Asia  at  the  Door:  ^ 

“ Whether  our  country  [the  United  States]  has 
reached  a stage  where  we  should  no  longer  receive 
immigrants  without  restriction,  is  a question  which 
I cannot  discuss  here.  One  thing,  however,  seems 
certain : namely,  that  any  alien,  once  admitted 
into  our  territories,  must  also  be  given  opportunity 
to  prove  that  he  can  be  a faithful  and  worthy  citizen 
of  the  Republic.  To  be  more  definite,  our  doors 
of  citizenship  must  be  open  to  all  aliens,  and  es- 
pecially those  who  come  from  countries  which  by 

* See  Kawakami,  Asia  at  the  Door,  Chapter  XV.  ^ Pages  68-69. 

306 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


dint  of  their  achievements  in  the  arts  of  peace  and 
of  warfare,  have  been  admitted  into  the  family  of 
civilized  nations.  For  the  sake  of  our  national 
solidarity  and  advancement,  it  is  not  advisable 
that  any  alien  should  be  permitted  to  enter  our 
country  without  at  the  same  time  affording  him 
the  privilege  to  become  a citizen.  Foreign  people 
living  within  our  jurisdiction  with  no  hope  of  be- 
coming American  citizens,  constitute  a floating 
unstable  element  in  our  national  existence.  They 
will  not  feel  with  us,  nor  will  they  think  as  we 
think.  To  them  the  woe  and  weal  of  our  body 
politic  are  of  little  consequence,  and  the  conduct 
of  our  public  affairs  is  of  no  greater  interest  than 
the  domestic  affairs  of  their  strange  neighbors. 

“ Nor  is  this  all.  When  we  single  out  aliens  of  a 
certain  race  or  nationality  as  objects  of  discrimina- 
tion in  the  matter  of  naturalization  we  fix  upon 
them  the  odium  of  inferiority  and  thus  instill  in 
their  hearts  a feeling  of  resentment.  We  look 
down  upon  them  with  contempt,  and  they  recipro- 
cate with  disdain.  We  assume  a suspicious  atti- 
tude towards  them,  and  they  also  look  at  us  with 
suspicion.  It  is  human  nature,  and  cannot  be 
avoided.  The  remedy  is  obvious.  Open  the  doors 
of  citizenship  to  them,  encourage  them  to  become 
worthy  members  of  the  commonwealth,  and  their 
hearts  will  glow  with  hope  and  they  will  strive  to 
prove  their  right  and  fitness  to  become  American 
citizens.” 

No  Aliens  should  be  permitted  to  enter  the 
Country  without  being  Eligible  to  Citizenship. — 
While  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  naturaliza- 
tion law  was  adopted  before  there  was  any  immi- 

307 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

gration  of  Japanese  and  there  has  been  no  positive 
discrimination  against  them  by  Congress,  these 
statements  by  Mr.  Kawakami  should  command 
assent.  His  statement  that  no  alien  should  be 
permitted  to  enter  this  country  without  being 
eligible  to  citizenship  is  based  upon  good  principle. 
Acceptable  individuals  of  any  race  living  here 
should  be  able  to  become  citizens. 

Many  Americans  favor  an  Amendment  of  the 
Naturalization  Law.  — In  my  investigations  care 
was  taken  to  secure  the  opinions  of  persons  with 
whom  I conferred  with  reference  to  the  naturaliza- 
tion of  Japanese  and  Chinese.  Most  of  those  who 
do  not  believe  in  drastic  limitation  of  immigration 
favor  an  amendment  of  the  naturalization  law  so 
that  it  will  apply  alike  to  all  races.  The  exceptions 
are  some  of  those  who  believe  in  an  immigration 
merely  to  serve  industrial  ends.  Many  who  be- 
lieve in  as  limited  an  immigration  as  we  now  have 
were  found,  also,  to  favor  a change  in  the  natural- 
ization law.  Among  them  were  a few  trade-union- 
ists. 

Race  Antipathy  has  much  to  do  with  Opposition 
to  any  Change.  — The  percentage  who  oppose  any 
such  change  in  the  law  was  found,  however,  to  be 
extremely  large.  My  impression  was  that  race 
antipathy  had  much  to  do  with  the  position  taken. 
But  numerous  reasons  were  assigned  for  the  opposi- 
tion to  any  change.  One  was  that  were  the  right 
to  become  naturalized  extended  to  the  Japanese, 
it  would  be  interpreted  as  showing  desirability  on 
their  part,  and  an  unrestricted  immigration  would 

308 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


be  demanded  by  them.  This  was  advanced  in  a 
striking  manner  particularly  by  one  of  the  ablest 
students  of  world  politics  in  the  West.  Were  the 
matter  of  immigration  settled  by  positive  legis- 
lation of  the  kind  outlined  in  this  chapter,  what- 
ever force  the  argument  has  would  be  lost. 

Perhaps  a Large  Percentage  of  Japanese  would 
become  Citizens  if  given  the  Opportunity.  — 
Some  argued  that  the  Japanese  were  so  loyal  to 
their  native  government  that  they  would  not 
become  naturalized,  or  if  naturalized,  could  not 
become  loyal  citizens  of  this  country.  With  ref- 
erence to  how  many  would  become  naturalized, 
the  Immigration  Commission  stated  the  results 
of  its  investigations  in  the  following  words : 

“ During  the  investigation  a comparatively  large 
number  of  the  farmers  and  business  classes  expressed 
a desire  to  become  naturalized  and  expressed  regret 
at  the  discrimination  against  persons  who  do  not 
belong  to  the  white  race.”  ^ 

Though  there  is  no  consensus  of  opinion  among 
Japanese  in  regard  to  the  matter,  my  personal 
inquiries  lead  me  to  believe  that  a very  large 
percentage  of  those  who  have  families  here  and 
expect  to  remain  permanently  would  seek  citizen- 
ship if  they  had  the  opportunity.  In  Canada  a 
large  percentage  have  become  citizens,  but  five 
sixths  of  those  in  British  Columbia  (a  large  majority 
of  all)  have  been  interested  chiefly  in  the  fishing 
license  withheld  from  aliens.  With  reference  to 

* Immigration  Commission,  Report,  Vol.  23,  p.  160. 

309 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  matter  of  loyalty,  my  impression  is  that  unless 
citizenship  was  acquired  incidental  to  avoiding 
prohibitions  upon  aliens  or  unless  there  was  con- 
tinued strife,  nearly  all  who  became  naturalized 
would  be  loyal  citizens.  Unless  it  was  necessary 
to  do  so  in  order  to  avoid  discriminating  legis- 
lation, few  would  become  naturalized  in  whom  the 
feeling  of  loyalty  to  the  fatherland  had  not  been 
pretty  much  overcome. 

There  might  be  a “ Japanese  Vote,”  but  it 
would  be  Small.  — Another  objection  usually  made 
by  those  who  oppose  naturalization  of  Japanese 
and  Chinese  is  that  they  would  vote  ” as  a unit.” 
If  there  was  much  discrimination  against  them, 
they  doubtless  would.  Moreover,  it  cannot  be 
denied  that  the  feeling  of  solidarity  among  the 
Japanese  is  strong.  The  difference  between  them 
and  the  Germans,  Poles,  and  Italians,  for  example, 
is,  however,  merely  one  of  degree.  It  may  be  said, 
moreover,  that  the  numbers  of  Asiatics  in  the 
continental  United  States  are  too  small  to  count 
for  much  in  any  event.  In  Hawaii,  where  a con- 
siderable number  of  Chinese  were  naturalized  be- 
fore the  Islands  were  annexed  and  where  there  are 
also  a few  hundred  adult  native-born,  the  Chinese 
are  ordinarily  regarded  as  a good  conservative 
class  of  voters. 

In  any  Legislation  the  Situation  in  Hawaii  must 
be  given  Serious  Consideration.  — It  was  interest- 
ing that  in  this  connection  no  one  referred  to  the 
situation  in  Hawaii,  where  in  1910  the  Japanese 
constituted  41.5  per  cent,  the  Chinese  11.3  per 

310 


SOME  SUGGESTIONS  CONSIDERED 


cent,  of  the  total  population.  Of  males  they  con- 
stituted 44.5  and  13.9  per  cent  respectively  of  the 
entire  number.  The  number  of  white  males  was 
little  larger  than  that  of  Chinese  and  less  than 
one  half  as  large  as  that  of  Japanese.  In  that 
territory  the  economic  position  of  the  races  and 
the  industrial  situation  are  such  that  friction  in 
economic  matters  might  occur.  Any  legislation 
concerning  naturalization  should  take  this  situation 
into  consideration.  Possibly  an  exception  should 
be  made  in  this  case.  Yet  Hawaii  is  not  without 
citizens  who  advocate  a change  in  the  law  so  that 
Asiatics  can  become  naturalized. 

Any  Legislation  involves  Risk.  — My  own  opin- 
ion is  that  the  naturalization  law  should  be 
changed  so  as  to  make  the  aliens  of  all  races 
eligible  to  citizenship.  Such  a law  would  be 
based  upon  good  principle  and  would  do  much  to 
foster  good  feeling  on  the  part  of  Asiatics  towards 
the  United  States  — an  end  greatly  to  be  desired. 
It  would  eliminate  the  discrimination  in  the  Arizona 
and  California  alien  land  laws  and  prevent  dis- 
crimination being  practiced  in  that  particular 
manner  in  the  future.  Yet  it  must  be  made  em- 
phatic that  any  discussion  of  measures  interpreted 
as  favorable  to  Asiatics,  whether  relating  to  im- 
migration or  to  naturalization,  will  meet  with  great 
opposition  on  the  Pacific  Coast  and  incidental  to 
it  there  might  be  more  discrimination  than  has 
thus  far  been  practiced.^  The  California  alien 

^ It  will  be  recalled  that  then  President  Roosevelt’s  recommen- 
dation (in  Message  to  Congress,  Dec.  3,  1906)  that  provision  should 

3II 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

land  law  may  be  practically  set  aside,  but  if  there 
is  sufficient  demand  for  a discriminatory  law,  there 
is  no  constitutional  way,  unless  it  is  through  trea- 
ties, to  prevent  the  adoption  of  measures  which 
would  discriminate  against  aliens  of  races  spe- 
cifically named.  This  is  not  a highly  centralized 
government.  A worse  situation  than  that  which 
obtains  can  be  easily  imagined.  The  greatest 
factors  in  solving  problems  are  time  and  mutual 
understanding.  Misunderstanding  easily  arises. 
Governments  should  avoid  drifting  into  policies 
which  create  problems. 

be  made  for  the  naturalization  of  Japanese,  met  with  loud  protest 
from  the  Pacific  Coast. 


312 


APPENDIX  A 


EXTRACTS  FROM  THE  TREATY  OP  COMMERCE 
AND  NAVIGATION  AND  PROTOCOL  BETWEEN 
JAPAN  AND  THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  AMER- 
ICA, OF  FEBRUARY  21,  1911 

His  Majesty,  the  Emperor  of  Japan,  and  the 
President  of  the  United  States  of  America,  being 
desirous  to  strengthen  the  relations  of  amity  and 
good  understanding  which  happily  exist  between 
the  two  nations,  and  believing  that  the  fixation 
in  a manner  clear  and  positive  of  the  rules  which 
are  hereafter  to  govern  the  commercial  intercourse 
between  their  respective  countries  will  contribute 
to  this  most  desirable  result,  have  resolved  to  con- 
clude a treaty  of  commerce  and  navigation. 

Article  I.  — The  subjects  or  citizens  of  each  of 
the  high  contracting  parties  shall  have  liberty  to 
enter,  travel,  and  reside  in  the  territories  of  the 
other,  to  carry  on  trade,  wholesale  and  retail, 
to  own  or  lease  and  occupy  houses,  manufactories, 
warehouses,  and  shops,  to  employ  agents  of  their 
choice,  to  lease  land  for  residential  and  commercial 
purposes,  and  generally  to  do  anything  incident 
to  or  necessary  for  trade,  upon  the  same  terms  as 
native  subjects  or  citizens,  submitting  themselves 
to  the  laws  and  regulations  there  established. 
They  shall  not  be  compelled,  under  any  pretext 

313 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

whatever,  to  pay  any  charges  or  taxes  other  or 
higher  than  those  that  are  or  may  be  paid  by  native 
subjects  or  citizens. 

The  subjects  or  citizens  of  each  of  the  high  con- 
tracting parties  shall  receive,  in  the  territories  of 
the  other,  the  most  constant  protection  and  se- 
curity for  their  persons  and  property  and  shall 
enjoy  in  this  respect  the  same  rights  and  privileges 
as  are  or  may  be  granted  to  native  subjects  or 
citizens,  on  their  submitting  themselves  to  the 
conditions  imposed  upon  the  native  subjects  and 
citizens. 

Article  IV.  — There  shall  be  between  the  terri- 
tories of  the  two  high  contracting  parties  reciprocal 
freedom  of  commerce  and  navigation.  The  sub- 
jects or  citizens  of  each  of  the  contracting  parties, 
equally  with  the  subjects  or  citizens  of  the  most 
favored  nation  shall  have  liberty  freely  to  come 
with  their  ships  and  cargoes  to  all  places,  ports, 
and  rivers  in  the  territories  of  the  other  which  are 
or  may  be  opened  to  foreign  commerce,  subject 
always  to  the  laws  of  the  country  to  which  they 
thus  come. 

Article  V.  — . . . Neither  contracting  party  shall 
impose  any  other  or  higher  duties  or  charges  on 
the  exportation  of  any  article  to  the  territories 
of  the  other  than  are  or  may  be  payable  on  the 
exportation  of  the  like  article  to  any  other  foreign 
country. 

Nor  shall  any  prohibition  be  imposed  by  either 
country  on  the  importation  or  exportation  of  any 
article  from  or  to  the  territories  of  the  other  which 

314 


APPENDIX  A 


shall  not  equally  extend  to  the  like  article  imported 
from  or  exported  to  any  other  country. 

Article  XIV.  — Except  as  otherwise  expressly 
provided  in  this  treaty,  the  high  contracting  parties 
agree  that  in  all  that  concerns  commerce  and  navi- 
gation, any  privilege,  favor,  or  immunity  which 
either  contracting  party  has  actually  granted  or 
may  hereafter  grant,  to  the  subjects  or  citizens  of 
any  other  state  shall  be  extended  to  the  subjects 
or  citizens  of  the  other  contracting  party  ...  on 
the  same  or  equivalent  conditions.  . . . 

Declaration 

In  proceeding  this  day  to  the  signature  of  the 
treaty  of  commerce  and  navigation,  . . . the  under- 
signed has  the  honor  to  declare  that  the  Imperial 
Japanese  Government  are  fully  prepared  to  main- 
tain with  equal  effectiveness  the  limitation  and 
control  which  they  have  for  the  past  three  years 
exercised  in  regulation  of  the  immigration  of  labor- 
ers to  the  United  States. 

(Signed)  Y.  Uchida. 

February  21,  1911. 


315 


APPENDIX  B 


CALIFORNIA’S  ALIEN  LAND  LAW 

(Approved  May  19,  1913) 

The  people  of  the  State  of  California  do  enact  as 

follows: 

Section  i.  All  aliens  eligible  to  citizenship 
under  the  laws  of  the  United  States  may  acquire, 
possess,  enjoy,  transmit  and  inherit  real  property, 
or  any  interest  therein,  in  this  State,  in  the  same 
manner  and  to  the  same  extent  as  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  except  as  otherwise  provided  by 
the  laws  of  this  State. 

Sec.  2.  All  aliens  other  than  those  mentioned  in 
section  one  of  this  act  may  acquire,  possess,  enjoy 
and  transfer  real  property,  or  any  interest  therein, 
in  this  State,  in  the  manner  and  to  the  extent  and 
for  the  purposes  prescribed  by  any  treaty  now 
existing  between  the  government  of  the  United 
States  and  the  nation  or  country  of  which  such 
alien  is  a citizen  or  subject  and  not  otherwise, 
and  may  in  addition  thereto  lease  lands  in  this 
State  for  agricultural  purposes  for  a term  not 
exceeding  three  years. 

Sec.  3.  Any  company,  association  or  corporation 
organized  under  the  laws  of  this  or  any  other  State 
or  nation,  of  which  a majority  of  the  members  are 
aliens  other  than  those  specified  in  section  one  of 

316 


APPENDIX  B 


this  act,  or  in  which  a majority  of  the  issued  capital 
stock  is  owned  by  such  aliens,  may  acquire,  possess, 
enjoy  and  convey  real  property,  or  any  interest 
therein,  in  this  State,  in  the  manner  and  to  the 
extent  and  for  the  purposes  prescribed  by  any 
treaty  now  existing  between  the  government  of 
the  United  States  and  the  nation  or  country  of 
which  such  members  or  stockholders  are  citizens 
or  subjects,  and  not  otherwise,  and  may  in  addition 
thereto  lease  lands  in  this  State  for  agricultural 
purposes  for  a term  not  exceeding  three  years. 

Sec.  4.  Whenever  it  appears  to  the  court  in  any 
probate  proceeding  that  by  reason  of  the  provisions 
of  this  act  any  heir  or  devisee  can  not  take  real 
property  in  this  State  which,  but  for  said  provisions, 
said  heir  or  devisee  would  take  as  such,  the  court, 
instead  of  ordering  a distribution  of  such  real 
property  to  such  heir  or  devisee,  shall  order  a sale 
of  said  real  property  to  be  made  in  the  manner 
provided  by  law  for  probate  sales  of  real  property, 
and  the  proceeds  of  such  sale  shall  be  distrib- 
uted to  such  heir  or  devisee  in  lieu  of  such  real 
property. 

Sec.  5.  Any  real  property  hereafter  acquired  in 
fee  in  violation  of  the  provisions  of  this  act  by  any 
alien  mentioned  in  section  two  of  this  act,  or  by  any 
company,  association  or  corporation  mentioned  in 
section  three  of  this  act,  shall  escheat  to,  and  become 
and  remain  the  property  of  the  State  of  California. 
The  attorney  general  shall  institute  proceedings 
to  have  the  escheat  of  such  real  property  adjudged 
and  enforced  in  the  manner  provided  by  section 

317 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

474  of  the  Political  Code  and  title  eight,  part 
three  of  the  Code  of  Civil  Procedure.  Upon  the 
entry  of  final  judgment  in  such  proceedings,  the 
title  to  such  real  property  shall  pass  to  the  State 
of  California.  The  provisions  of  this  section  and  of 
sections  two  and  three  of  this  act  shall  not  apply 
to  any  real  property  hereafter  acquired  in  the 
enforcement  or  in  satisfaction  of  any  lien  now 
existing  upon,  or  interest  in  such  property,  so  long 
as  such  real  property  so  acquired  shall  remain  the 
property  of  the  alien,  company,  association  or 
corporation  acquiring  the  same  in  such  manner. 

Sec.  6.  Any  leasehold  or  other  interest  in  real 
property  less  than  the  fee,  hereafter  acquired  in 
violation  of  the  provisions  of  this  act  by  any  alien 
mentioned  in  section  two  of  this  act,  or  by  any 
company,  association  or  corporation  mentioned  in 
section  three  of  this  act,  shall  escheat  to  the  State 
of  California.  The  attorney  general  shall  institute 
proceedings  to  have  such  escheat  adjudged  and 
enforced  as  provided  in  section  five  of  this  act. 
In  such  proceedings  the  court  shall  determine 
and  adjudge  the  value  of  such  leasehold,  or  other 
interest  in  such  real  property,  and  enter  judgment 
for  the  State  for  the  amount  thereof  together  with 
costs.  Thereupon  the  court  shall  order  a sale  of 
the  real  property  covered  by  such  leasehold,  or 
other  interest,  in  the  manner  provided  by  section 
1271  of  the  Code  of  Civil  Procedure.  Out  of  the 
proceeds  arising  from  such  sale,  the  amount  of  the 
judgment  rendered  for  the  State  shall  be  paid 
into  the  State  treasury  and  the  balance  shall  be 

318 


APPENDIX  B 


deposited  with  and  distributed  by  the  court  in 
accordance  with  the  interest  of  the  parties  therein. 

Sec.  7.  Nothing  in  this  act  shall  be  construed 
as  a limitation  upon  the  power  of  the  State  to  enact 
laws  with  respect  to  the  acquisition,  holding  or 
disposal  by  aliens  of  real  property  in  this  State. 

Sec.  8.  All  acts  and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent 
or  in  conflict  with  the  provisions  of  this  act,  are 
hereby  repealed. 


319 


APPENDIX  C 


A JAPANESE  SUMMARY  STATEMENT  CONCERNING 
THE  STRUGGLE  OVER  THE  ENACTMENT  OF  THE 
CALIFORNIA  ALIEN  LAND  LAW 

Upon  the  opening  of  the  last  session  of  the  State 
Legislature  of  California,  the  Imperial  Government 
made  to  Mr.  Taft,  then  the  President,  and  to  Mr. 
Knox,  then  the  Secretary  of  State,  an  earnest  re- 
quest that,  in  order  to  prevent  the  enactment  of 
anti-Japanese  laws,  appropriate  and  effective  meas- 
ures might  be  taken  by  the  Federal  Government,  as 
had  been  done  in  similar  circumstances  on  previous 
occasions.  This  they  gladly  complied  with.  As, 
however,  it  was  near  the  close  of  his  administration, 
Mr.  Taft  could  not  do  much  before  he  was  relieved 
by  Mr.  Wilson.  In  view  of  the  situation  which 
prevailed  in  the  State  of  California  at  that  time, 
the  Imperial  Government  thought  it  wise  to  call 
the  special  attention  of  the  new  Administration  to 
the  matter  and  instructed  Ambassador  Chinda  to 
approach  the  new  President  for  that  purpose. 
Mr.  Wilson  received  Ambassador  Chinda  on  March 
5,  the  second  day  of  the  new  Administration. 
Under  instructions  of  his  Government,  Viscount 
Chinda  stated  to  the  President,  on  that  occasion, 
that  the  Imperial  Government  were  deeply  pained 
to  find,  in  spite  of  Japan’s  constant  friendly  atti- 

320 


APPENDIX  C 


tude  towards  the  United  States,  various  bills  of 
anti -Japanese  nature  pending  in  the  Legislatures 
of  the  Pacific  Coast  States,  particularly  in  that  of 
California,  and  that,  should  any  of  these  bills 
become  a law,  the  effect  would  be  very  serious, 
and  the  Ambassador  expressed  an  earnest  hope  that 
the  new  Executive  would,  in  the  interest  of  the 
friendly  relations  of  the  two  countries,  exhaust 
his  best  endeavors  to  check  the  threatened  hostile 
legislation.  The  President  thanked  the  Ambassa- 
dor for  the  representation  thus  made,  and  assured 
him  that,  although  the  Central  Government  could 
not,  under  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States, 
interfere  with  the  rights  reserved  to  the  States  of 
the  Union,  he  would  not  hesitate  to  do  all  in  his 
power  to  meet  the  wishes  of  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment. On  March  13,  the  same  assurance  was 
given  to  the  Ambassador  by  Mr.  Bryan,  the  Secre- 
tary of  State. 

Meantime,  in  California  our  Consul  was  doing 
all  that  he  could  properly  do  in  the  circumstances. 
Besides,  the  Panama  Pacific  International  Exposi- 
tion Company,  which  was  energetically  opposed 
to  the  enactment  of  hostile  measures,  did  not  hesi- 
tate to  use  every  legitimate  means  in  their  power, 
to  prevent  the  antagonistic  measures  in  question 
from  being  carried  out.  In  addition,  a number 
of  chambers  of  commerce  and  other  influential 
bodies  passed  resolutions  condemning  such  anti- 
Japanese  legislation,  and  similar  views  were  also 
expressed  in  no  small  number  of  newspapers. 

In  the  first  part  of  the  session  the  fate  of  the 

321 


Y 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

bill  remained  in  doubt,  but  in  the  latter  half  of 
the  session  the  activities  of  the  anti- Japanese 
members  in  the  Legislature  increased  and  the  situa- 
tion became  serious. 

Thereupon  Ambassador  Chinda,  under  instruc- 
tions from  the  Imperial  Government,  had  an  in- 
terview first  with  the  Secretary  of  State  on  April  12, 
and  then  with  the  President  on  April  15.  On  both 
occasions,  the  Ambassador,  after  dwelling  upon 
the  traditional  friendship  between  Japan  and  the 
United  States,  explained  how  very  sincere  the 
Imperial  Government  had  always  been  in  their 
desire  to  maintain  and  strengthen  the  friendly 
relations  of  the  two  countries,  and  as  illustrative 
of  the  sentiments  of  good  accord  and  good  neigh- 
borhood, he  pointed  out  such  instances  as  the  volun- 
tary restriction  of  emigration  of  Japanese  to  the 
United  States,  as  well  as  their  prompt  acceptance 
of  the  invitation  to  participate  in  the  San  Francisco 
Fair  and  the  like.  The  Ambassador  then  stated 
that  the  number  of  Japanese  and  their  activities 
in  California  were  greatly  exaggerated  by  the 
public,  and  he  declared  that  the  acreage  of  the 
land  owned  by  them  was  too  small  to  justify  any 
apprehension  or  uneasiness  on  the  part  of  the  people 
of  California,  and  in  these  circumstances,  the  Im- 
perial Government  could  not,  he  said,  understand 
why  the  lawful  rights  of  Japanese  must  be  curtailed 
or  abridged  by  such  unjust  and  extraordinary 
enactments,  and  he  added,  that  such  discrimination 
was  likely  to  bring  deplorable  consequences  to  the 
relations  of  friendship  as  well  as  to  the  commercial 

322 


APPENDIX  C 


intercourse  between  Japan  and  the  United  States, 
and  that  for  the  sake  of  the  honor  and  dignity  of  the 
country,  if  for  no  other  reason,  the  Imperial  Gov- 
ernment could  not  remain  indifferent  to  such  unfair 
treatment  of  their  people.  The  Ambassador  then 
asked  the  President  and  the  Secretary  of  State  that 
greater  efforts  be  made  by  the  Federal  Government 
to  prevent  the  passage  of  the  measure  in  question. 

To  this,  both  the  President  and  the  Secretary  of 
State  responded  that  they  fully  appreciated  the 
wish  .of  the  Japanese  Government,  and  they  took 
particular  pains  in  explaining  that  the  power  to 
grant  land  ownership  rested  entirely  with  the 
Authorities  of  the  State,  and  the  exceptional 
circumstance,  they  added,  that  the  Federal  Ad- 
ministration and  the  State  authorities  of  Cali- 
fornia happen  to  belong  to  different  political 
parties,  made  the  situation  all  the  more  difficult 
to  deal  with.  Both  officers  further  assured  the 
Ambassador  that  the  representations  made  by  him 
would  be  given  most  sympathetic  consideration, 
and  the  best  efforts  of  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment be  made  with  a view  to  bring  about  an 
amicable  settlement  of  the  question  and  they 
asked  him  to  bring  this  attitude  on  their  part  to 
the  notice  of  his  Government  so  that  it  might  be 
thoroughly  understood  by  them. 

On  April  i8,  the  President  caused  the  Secretary 
of  State  to  send  a telegram  to  the  Governor  of 
California,  advising  him  that  while  the  President 
was  not  in  the  least  inclined  to  disregard  the  in- 
dependence of  the  legislative  power  of  the  State 

323 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

of  California,  he  was  anxious  that  no  attempt  should 
be  made,  having  in  view  the  good  relations  with  a 
friendly  Oriental  Power,  to  use  the  formula  of  eligi- 
bility to  citizenship  for  the  purpose  of  drawing  a 
distinction  between  aliens  in  the  matter  of  the  en- 
joyment of  rights.  More  telegrams  followed  this, 
from  the  President  on  April  22,  and  May  i,  and 
from  the  Secretary  of  State  on  May  ii,  to  the 
Governor  who,  in  response  to  these  messages,  ex- 
plained his  position.  Meanwhile,  Viscount  Chinda 
had  several  interviews  with  the  Secretary  of  State 
and  endeavored  to  cause  the  contention  of  the 
Imperial  Government  to  be  fully  appreciated  by 
the  United  States  Government.  He  repeatedly 
explained  that  the  bill  then  pending  was  evidently 
aimed  at  the  exclusion  of  Japanese  people  and  was, 
consequently,  in  disregard  of  the  letter  and  spirit 
of  the  Treaty,  and  he  urged  that  no  matter  what 
the  wording  of  the  Act  might  be,  any  law,  which 
would  in  effect  be  discriminatory  and  therefore 
offensive  to  Japanese,  ought  not,  in  good  neigh- 
borhood, to  be  enacted. 

Unfortunately,  the  State  Legislature  took  no 
heed  of  the  advice  given  by  the  Federal  Government 
and  consequently  the  situation  became  still  more 
grave.  The  President,  then,  saw  the  necessity  of 
direct  consultation  with  the  authorities  of  the  State 
in  the  matter  and  sent,  with  the  consent  of  the 
Governor  and  the  Legislature,  the  Secretary  of 
State  to  California.  Mr.  Bryan  reached  the  State 
capital  on  April  28  and  appeared  in  the  joint 
sessions  of  the  two  houses  of  the  Legislature,  in 

324 


APPENDIX  C 


order  to  explain  personally  the  request  of  the 
Federal  Government.  The  Secretary  made  various 
suggestions  and  tried  his  best  to  make  the  terms  of 
the  bill  less  objectionable.  But  the  Governor  and 
the  members  of  the  Legislature  who  supported 
him,  remained  unmoved  by  what  the  Secretary 
said,  strictly  adhering  to  the  principle  that  the 
rights  of  the  State  must  not  be  interfered  with, 
and  the  Webb  bill,  which  is  so  marked  in  its 
anti- Japanese  features,  at  last  passed  the  Legis- 
lature. 

Now  that  the  bill  had  become  law,  and  no  room 
left  for  remonstrance,  the  Imperial  Government 
had  no  other  recourse  except  to  lodge  with  the 
United  States  Government  a formal  protest  against 
the  measure.  They  accordingly  instructed  their 
Ambassador  in  Washington  to  hand  to  the  Secre- 
tary of  State,  on  May  lO,  their  first  formal  note  of 
protest.  The  note  pointed  out,  with  particular 
emphasis,  that  the  Act  in  question  was  not  only 
essentially  unfair  and  discriminatory,  but  was  in- 
consistent with  the  treaty  provisions  and  was  also 
opposed  to  the  spirit  and  fundamental  principles 
of  amity  and  good  understanding,  upon  which  the 
conventional  relations  of  the  two  countries  de- 
pended. Then  again,  it  was  specifically  argued 
that  the  enactment  in  question,  was  unjust  and 
contrary  to  the  treaty  provisions,  not  only  in  de- 
priving Japanese  of  the  right  to  transmit  to  their 
legal  heirs  their  already  lawfully  acquired  landed 
property,  but  in  several  other  respects.  In  con- 
clusion the  hope  was  expressed  that,  in  view  of 

325 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  sympathetic  and  accommodating  disposition, 
with  which  the  American  Administration  had  al- 
ways befriended  the  Japanese  Government,  the 
present  difficulties  would  be  set  at  rest  in  a manner 
worthy  of  the  historic  relations  of  cordial  friendship 
between  the  two  neighboring  nations. 

On  May  ii,  the  Secretary  of  State  sent,  by  order 
of  the  President,  a telegram  to  the  Governor  of 
California,  in  which,  apprising  the  latter  of  the 
receipt  of  a protest  from  the  Japanese  Government, 
he  said  that  the  President  was  fully  alive  to  the 
importance  of  removing  the  root  of  discord  between 
American  citizens  and  subjects  of  an  Oriental  na- 
tion residing  in  the  country,  but  that  he  was  im- 
pelled by  a sense  of  duty  to  express  the  hope  that 
the  Governor  would  see  fit  to  allow  time  for  dip- 
lomatic effort  to  discover  and  correct  any  evils  that 
might  exist  in  connection  with  landownership  by 
aliens.  This  effort  on  the  part  of  the  President 
to  induce  the  Governor  to  reconsider  the  matter 
and  to  refrain  from  signing  the  bill  was  without 
avail.  The  Governor  telegraphed  back  to  the 
President  on  May  14,  pointing  out  the  necessity 
which  called  for  the  legislation  in  question,  and 
expressed  the  belief  that  in  enacting  the  measure 
the  people  of  California  had  violated  no  treaty 
rights.  He  thus  made  it  known  that  he  was  de- 
termined to  approve  the  bill.  The  Governor 
signed  the  Act  on  the  19th.  Upon  receipt  of  the 
news  that  the  bill  had  become  law,  the  Secretary  of 
State  handed  to  Ambassador  Chinda  a reply  to  the 
protest  of  the  Japanese  Government.  It  began  by 

326 


APPENDIX  C 


Stating  that  the  United  States  Government  re- 
gretted that  the  Japanese  Government  should  re- 
gard the  legislation  in  question  as  an  indication  of 
unfriendliness  towards  their  people  and  that  the 
President  and  the  Secretary  of  State  had  very 
earnestly  attempted  to  induce  the  legislative  au- 
thorities of  California  to  reconsider  the  matter. 
Then  the  reply  endeavored  to  explain  that  the 
enactment  was  without  any  political  significance, 
but  was  solely  the  result  of  particular  economic 
conditions  existing  in  California.  It  was  further 
pointed  out,  in  response  to  the  Japanese  contention, 
that  the  declared  intention  of  the  law  was  to  respect 
and  preserve  all  rights  under  existing  treaties,  and 
that  in  case  of  failure  to  accomplish  that  intent, 
the  aggrieved  Japanese  would  have  the  right  to 
resort  to  the  federal  courts  for  the  enforcement  of 
their  rights.  It  was  added,  in  conclusion,  that 
the  economic  policy  of  a single  state  with  regard 
to  a single  kind  of  property,  could  not  turn  aside 
the  strong  and  abiding  currents  of  generous  and 
profitable  intercourse  and  good  understanding  be- 
tween the  two  nations. 

No  doubt  it  was  because  the  United  States  Gov- 
ernment appreciated  the  position  of  the  Japanese 
Government  and  realized  the  serious  international 
complications  resulting  from  the  conduct  of  the 
State  of  California,  that  they  attempted  to  prevent, 
by  some  means,  the  passage  of  the  bill  while  it 
was  still  under  consideration  in  the  California 
Legislature,  and  went  at  last  even  so  far  as  to  send 
the  Secretary  of  State  to  California  to  accomplish 

327 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

that  end.  In  view  of  this  and  also  of  what  had 
passed  between  Ambassador  Chinda  and  Secretary 
Bryan  in  their  several  interviews  on  the  subject, 
it  was  considered  but  natural  that  the  United  States 
Government,  which  could  not  prevent  the  enact- 
ment of  an  unjust  law,  should  now  take  some  ap- 
propriate steps  to  nullify  the  measure.  As  above 
stated,  however,  the  reply  of  the  United  States 
Government,  while  avoiding  the  maintenance  of  the 
issue  that  the  Act  in  question  was  not  in  disregard 
of  existing  treaty  rights,  not  only  showed  no  dis- 
position to  test  the  validity  of  the  enactment  in  the 
court  but  failed  to  offer  any  solution  whatever  of  the 
problem. 

Believing,  as  they  did,  that  the  Act  in  question 
was  in  violation  of  treaty  provisions,  and,  therefore, 
that  the  duty  of  remedying  the  wrong  rested  with 
the  United  States  Government,  the  Imperial  Gov- 
ernment could  not  possibly  be  satisfied  with  such 
a reply.  Accordingly  on  June  4,  they  instructed 
their  Ambassador  in  Washington  to  address  to  the 
Secretary  of  State  the  second  note  of  protest, 
setting  forth  in  fuller  detail,  the  points  which  they 
believed  to  be  in  contravention  of  the  existing 
treaty  provisions.  The  Secretary  of  State,  in 
receiving  the  note,  reiterated  the  assurances  that 
careful  consideration  would  be  given  to  the  matter 
and  that  the  enactment  was  not  a culmination  of 
racial  prejudice,  but  an  outcome  of  a purely  eco- 
nomical question. 

On  the  following  day.  Viscount  Chinda  had 
audience  with  the  President  and  presented  a memo- 

328 


APPENDIX  C 


randum  in  which  the  views  of  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment on  the  general  relations  between  Japan  and 
the  United  States  were  frankly  set  forth,  in  the  hope 
that  this  exposition  might  help  to  solve  the  difficulty. 
The  memorandum  stated  in  substance  that  as 
Japan  and  the  United  States  were  geographically 
destined  to  be  permanent  neighbors,  the  people  of 
the  two  countries  were  inevitably  in  a position  to 
be  brought  in  the  future,  economically  and  socially, 
into  closer  contact  with  each  other  and  that,  as  it 
would  contribute  to  the  mutual  happiness  of  the 
two  nations  to  perfect  the  relationship  of  good 
neighborhood  by  a policy  of  reciprocal  conciliation 
and  cooperation,  each  nation,  aspiring  to  be  fair 
and  just,  should  not  commit  any  acts  which  might 
hurt  the  dignity  or  injure  the  feelings  of  the  other. 
The  President,  who  listened  to  the  reading  of  the 
memorandum,  declared  that  he  was  fully  alive 
to  the  importance  of  maintaining  good  relations 
between  the  two  nations  and  explained  at  length, 
as  did  also  the  Secretary  of  State,  that  the  enact- 
ment in  question  was  based  purely  on  economical 
considerations  and  was  not  the  outcome  of  racial 
prejudice.  He  also  added  that  if  on  further  study, 
the  law  should  be  found  to  be  in  conflict  with  treaty 
provisions,  the  administration  would  be  prepared 
to  seek  a judicial  remedy  and  that,  even  in  case  a 
suit  should  not  be  instituted,  means  would  be  sought 
to  compensate  Japanese  for  any  loss  which  they 
might  have  actually  sustained. 

In  the  meantime,  the  Imperial  Government  as 
the  result  of  their  further  study  of  the  provisions  of 

329 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

the  Land  Act  which  were  inconsistent  with  Treaty 
provisions,  prepared  an  Aide-Memoire.  This,  Am- 
bassador Chinda  presented  to  the  United  States 
Government  on  July  3,  as  supplement  to  his  second 
note  of  protest  above  referred  to. 

On  July  16,  the  Secretary  of  State  handed  to 
Ambassador  Chinda  the  reply  of  the  United  States 
Government  to  the  second  note  of  the  Imperial 
Government  and  the  supplementary  Aide-Memoire. 
It  was  a very  long  one,  and  after  giving  in  detail 
counter  arguments  on  the  points  raised  in  our  pro- 
tests, three  suggestions  were  given  as  a remedy  in 
the  case  : (i)  in  case  the  aggrieved  Japanese  should 
bring  suit  in  the  United  States  Court,  the  American 
Government  would  stand  ready  at  all  times  to  use 
their  good  offices  to  secure  prompt  and  efficacious 
determination  ; (2)  the  United  States  Government 
would  stand  ready  to  compensate  Japanese  for  any 
loss  which  they  might  show  to  have  been  actually 
sustained  on  account  of  the  statute,  or  (3)  to  pur- 
chase from  them  their  lands  at  their  full  market 
value  prior  to  enactment  of  the  statute. 

The  attitude  of  the  United  States  Government  on 
the  question,  as  has  been  evinced  in  this  corre- 
spondence, was  far  from  being  satisfactory  to  the 
Imperial  Government,  and,  therefore,  they  prepared 
their  third  note  of  protest  which  Ambassador  Chinda 
handed  to  the  Secretary  of  State  on  August  26  last. 
In  this  note  the  Imperial  Government  pointed  out 
that  the  Act  in  question  established  a discrimina- 
tion of  a most  marked  and  invidious  character 
against  Japan  by  depriving  Japanese  of  the  right 

330 


APPENDIX  C 


of  land  ownership,  while  freely  continuing  the  same 
right,  not  only  in  favor  of  the  citizens  of  all  the 
other  powers  with  which  the  United  States  main- 
tains reciprocal  treaty  relations,  but  in  favor  of 
many  non-treaty  aliens,  and  that  whatever  causes 
might  have  been  responsible  for  the  measure,  it 
could  not  be  denied  that  in  its  final  manifestation 
it  was  clearly  indicative  of  racial  prejudice,  nor 
could  any  justification  for  the  Act  be  found  in  the 
simple  assertion  that  the  legislation  was  the  out- 
come of  economic  conditions,  and  it  was,  moreover, 
pointed  out  that  the  question  of  immigration,  which 
the  Secretary  of  State  referred  to  in  his  last  note, 
had  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  the  present  con- 
troversy, as  that  question  was  satisfactorily  ad- 
justed between  the  two  Governments  a few  years 
ago,  and  that  the  present  controversy  related  ex- 
clusively to  the  question  of  the  treatment  of 
Japanese  subjects  who  are  lawfully  in  the  United 
States  or  may  hereafter  lawfully  become  residents 
therein. 

The  correspondence  as  reviewed  in  the  foregoing 
pages  shows  that  the  United  States  Government  are 
not  disposed  to  take  issue  whether  the  Act  in  ques- 
tion is  in  conflict  with  the  existing  treaty  provisions 
or  not.  Nor  are  they  ready  to  go  beyond  suggesting 
a few  trivial  remedies  in  the  case.  It  appeared  to 
the  Imperial  Government  that  a fundamental  solu- 
tion of  the  question  could,  in  these  circumstances, 
only  be  found  in  the  conclusion  of  a new  supplemen- 
tary convention  designed  to  cure  the  existing  treaty. 
After  careful  study  they  decided  to  make  a proposi- 

331 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

tion  along  these  lines  and  instructed  Ambassador 
Chinda  in  August  last  to  propose  to  the  United 
States  Government  the  conclusion  of  such  a con- 
vention, draft  of  which  was  tentatively  submitted 
by  the  Ambassador  to  the  Secretary  of  State.  Pro- 
longed negotiations  followed  and  finally  the  United 
States  Government  proposed  an  amendment  to 
the  Japanese  draft  which  would  in  effect  make  the 
project  foreign  to  the  controversy  which  alone  had 
given  rise  to  it.  Therefore,  after  mature  delibera- 
tion the  present  Ministry  reluctantly  decided  to 
withdraw  the  proposal  and  sent  to  Ambassador 
Chinda  on  the  9th  instant  the  following  telegraphic 
instructions,  copy  of  which  he  left  with  the  Secre- 
tary of  State  on  the  loth. 

Baron  Kato  to  Viscount  Chinda. 

Department  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
June  9,  1914. 

Among  the  more  important  pending  questions 
that  confronted  me  when  I assumed  charge  of  this 
department,  was  the  issue  resulting  from  the  enact- 
ment last  year  of  the  Legislature  of  California 
respecting  alien  real  property  ownership.  The 
measure,  as  you  are  aware,  undertook,  in  effect, 
to  draw  a distinction  in  the  matter  of  such  owner- 
ship between  aliens  belonging  to  different  races. 
The  avowed  purpose  of  the  law,  was  on  the  one 
hand,  to  annul  the  then  existing  right  of  ownership 
so  far  as  Japanese  subjects  were  concerned,  and, 
on  the  other,  to  continue  the  right  in  favor  of  aliens 
of  the  white  and  black  races. 

I have  given  the  subject  my  most  serious  con- 

332 


APPENDIX  C 


sideration  and  am  consequently  well  satisfied  that 
the  enactment  in  question,  is  not  only  in  disregard 
of  the  letter  and  spirit  of  the  existing  treaty  between 
Japan  and  the  United  States,  but  is  essentially  un- 
fair and  invidiously  discriminatory  against  my 
countrymen,  and  inconsistent  as  well  with  the 
sentiments  of  amity  and  good  neighborhood  which 
have  always  presided  over  the  relations  between 
the  two  countries ; nor  can  I escape  the  conviction 
that  said  enactment,  which  was  intended  to  have 
international  effect,  is  also  in  excess  of  the  authority 
of  the  State  of  California,  for  the  reason  that  the 
separate  States  of  the  United  States  are,  interna- 
tionally speaking,  wholly  unknown  and  entirely 
without  responsibility.-  In  any  case,  the  Imperial 
Government  are  confident  that  the  action  com- 
plained of  stands  without  historical  parallel,  and 
they  are  happy  to  believe  that  the  legislation  in 
question  forms  no  part  of  the  general  policy  of 
the  Federal  Government  but  is  the  outcome  of 
unfortunate  local  conditions. 

I,  therefore,  fully  concur  in  the  views  which  you, 
in  pursuance  of  instructions  from  my  predecessor 
presented  to  the  Honorable  the  Secretary  of  State 
on  the  subject.  I also  cordially  appreciate  the 
motives  which,  in  the  interest  of  international 
conciliation  and  good  will,  induced  Baron  Makino 
to  give  favorable  consideration  to  the  idea  of  con- 
cluding a convention  regarding  the  matter.  But 
the  project,  as  it  stands  at  the  present  time,  instead 
of  composing  existing  misunderstandings,  would  I 
fear  tend  to  create  new  difficulties. 

Accordingly,  you  are  instructed  to  inform  Mr. 
Bryan  that  the  Imperial  Government  are  disinclined 
to  continue  the  negotiations  looking  to  the  con- 

333 


THE  JAPANESE  PROBLEM  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

elusion  of  a convention  on  the  lines  of  the  project 
which  has  been  under  discussion,  but  that  they 
prefer  to  recur  to  the  correspondence  which  was 
interrupted  by  the  ineffective  negotiations  and  that 
they  will  now  look  for  an  answer  to  the  Note  which 
you  handed  to  Mr.  Bryan  on  the  26th  of  August 
last,  hoping  that  in  a renewal  of  the  study  of  the 
case,  a fundamental  solution  of  the  question  at 
issue  may  happily  be  found. 

The  negotiations  looking  to  an  adjustment  of  the 
matter  in  dispute  by  means  of  a convention  having 
failed,  the  advantage  of  still  withholding  from  the 
public  the  correspondence  that  has  passed  between 
the  two  Governments  on  the  subject,  is  no  longer 
apparent.  You  are,  consequently,  also  instructed 
to  announce  to  the  Secretary  of  State  that  the 
Imperial  Government  desire  to  make  public  the 
correspondence  in  question,  believing  that  fuller 
and  more  accurate  information  regarding  the  matter 
will  contribute  to  the  final  settlement  of  the  con- 
troversy. 

You  are  authorized,  in  carrying  out  the  above 
instructions,  to  hand  a copy  of  this  Note  to  Mr. 
Bryan. 


334 


^HE  following  pages  contain  advertisements  of 
books  on  kindred  subjefts. 


IMPORTANT  BOOKS  ON  JAPAN 


The  Faith  of  Japan 

By  Dr.  TASAKU  HARADA 

President  of  Doshisha  University  at  Kyoto 

Cloth,  %i.2S 

“ Shintoism,  Confucianism,  Buddhism,  Christianity,  and  even  Bushido  are  all 
interpreted  in  a lucid,  illuminating,  and  fraternal  spirit.” — The  Independent. 


Just  before  the  Dawn  — The  Life  and  Work  of  Ninomiya 
Sontoku 

By  R.  C.  ARMSTRONG 

Cloth,  $i.jo 

“ While  specifically  concerned  with  the  life  and  teachings  of  the  peasant  sage  of 
Japan,  there  is  presented  through  this  story  of  the  great  farmer  and  the  cult  which 
grew  up  around  him,  a graphic  picture  of  the  actual  daily  life  of  the  Japanese,  in- 
cluding their  religion  and  social  customs."  — Boston  Transcript. 


The  Soul  of  the  Far  East 

By  PERCIVAL  LOWELL 


Cloth,  $1.60 


"...  mingled  humor,  acuteness  of  observation,  grace  of  style,  and  warm  human 
interest.”  — The  Dial. 


Japan : An  Attempt  at  Interpretation 

By  LAFCADIO  HEARN 

Cloth,  $2.00  ; Standard  Library  Edition,  $ .jo 

“A  thousand  books  have  been  written  about  Japan,  but  this  is  one  of  the  rarely 
precious  volumes  which  opens  the  door  to  an  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  won- 
derful people  who  command  the  attention  of  the  world  to-day.”  — Boston  Herald. 

OTHER  VALUABLE  BOOKS  ON  JAPAN 
By  Mrs.  HUGH  FRASER 


The  Custom  of  the  Country:  Tales  of  New  Japan 
Letters  from  Japan,  Second  Edition 


Cloth,  $1.^0 
III.,  Cloth,  $3.00 


By  ONOTO  WATANNA 

Daughters  of  Nijo  coi.  ill..  Cloth,  $1.30 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers  64-66  Piftb  Avenue  New  York 


Races  and  Immigrants  in  America 


By  JOHN  R.  COMMONS 

University  of  Wisconsin 

Cloth,  j2mo,  242  pages,  $i.go 

“ The  colonial  race  elements  are  considered,  brief  chapters  are  given  to  the  negro 
and  recent  immigrants,  and  industry,  labor,  city  life,  crime,  poverty,  and  politics  are 
treated  in  their  relation  to  the  maintenance  or  destruction  of  democracy.  Professor 
Commons’s  purpose  appears  to  be  to  summarize  the  latest  available  data  upon  his 
subject  and  leave  conclusions  largely  to  the  reader.  In  line  with  this  purpose  is  a 
valuable  list  of  authorities  consulted.  It  is  certain  that  the  book  will  be  of  great 
service  to  ministers,  sociologists,  and  aU  who  are  concerned  in  the  problems  of  the 
day.” — Chicago  Interior. 

“ The  work  is  scientific  as  to  method  and  popular  in  style,  and  forms  a very  use- 
ful handbook  about  the  American  population.”  — Dial. 

” Well  fortified  throughout  by  statistics,  and  evidencing  a wide  range  of  observa- 
tion, the  great  merit  of  the  volume  is  its  sensibleness.”  — Nation. 

" While  not  profound,  it  is  a brief  and  concise  treatment  of  serious  public  prob- 
lems, and  is  characterized  by  the  good  Judgment  and  general  sanity  which  are 
evident  in  Professor  Commons’s  works  in  general.  The  general  point  of  view  and 
conclusions  of  the  book  are  undoubtedly  sound,  and  it  will  serve  a useful  purpose 
in  introducing  to  many  the  serious  study  of  our  racial  and  immigration  problems. 
To  one  who  can  spend  but  a brief  time  in  reading  along  the  line  of  these  problems, 
but  who  wishes  a general  survey  of  them  all,  there  is  no  book  that  can  be  more 
heartily  commended.  — CHARLES  A.  Ellwood  in  The  American  Journal  of 
Sociology. 

" This  is  an  extremely  valuable  study  of  the  greatest  problem  which  the  United 
States  has  to  solve  to-day ; perhaps  greater  than  that  of  all  the  ages  that  have  pre- 
ceded it,  namely,  the  assimilation  of  large  numbers  of  dissimilar  races  into  a com- 
posite race.  . . . To-day  in  the  city  of  New  York  sixty-six  different  tongues  are 
spoken.  A century  hence  there  will  probably  be  only  one.  And  throughout  the 
country  there  are  communities  in  which  the  English  is  not  the  dominant  language. 
But  the  railroad,  the  post  office,  and  the  telegraph,  as  they  bind  them  in  interest, 
will  bind  them  in  speech.  It  is  in  this  view  that  the  book  is  of  inestimable  value.” — 
American  Historical  Magazine. 

" Professor  Commons  has  long  been  a diligent  and  penetrating  student  of  indus- 
trial conditions  in  this  country,  and  particularly  of  the  labor  movement.  His  inves- 
tigations in  this  latter  field  have  brought  him  face  to  face  with  the  situation  that 
confronts  the  arriving  immigrant,  and  he  has  been  led  to  inquire  into  the  varying 
abilities  of  different  races  to  make  use  of  the  opportunities  presented  in  this  land 
for  their  advancement.  . . . We  do  not  recall  another  book  of  its  size  that  presents 
so  much  important  and  essential  information  on  this  vital  topic.”  — Review  of 
Reviews. 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers  64-66  Fifth  Avenue  Hew  York 


The  New  Immigration 

By  peter  ROBERTS,  Ph.D. 

Author  of  “Anthracite  Coal  Industry,"  "Anthracite  Coal  Communities,"  etc. 


Illustrated,  cloth,  issno,  $i.6o 

Dr.  Roberts’s  book  is  a clear  and  distinctive  study  of  the 
industrial  and  social  life  of  Southeastern  Europeans  in 
America. 

Many  works  have  been  published  describing  the  immi- 
grants in  their  home  land,  their  coming  to  America,  and 
the  difficulties  they  encounter  before  they  reach  their 
destination,  but  few  writers  have  attempted  what  Dr. 
Roberts  has  done  in  the  present  book  — to  give  a vivid 
picture  of  the  immigrants  of  the  last  thirty  years  at  work, 
in  their  homes  and  social  life,  and  to  discuss  their  treat- 
ment when  they  enter  their  part  in  the  industries  of  the 
United  States. 

“ It  is  a book  well  calculated  to  arouse  a sympathetic  interest  in  these 
newcomers  to  our  shores,  so  alien  from  us  in  customs  and  points  of 
view ; and  it  is,  moreover,  a most  readable  book,  with  its  wealth  of  illus- 
trative anecdote  from  the  tenement,  the  factory,  the  mine,  and  the 
logging  and  railway  camp.”  — T/ie  Outlook. 

“ . . . gives  a great  deal  of  information  and  inspiration,  ought  to 
attract  the  thinking  public.” — Chicago  Evening  Post. 

“ A valuable  book.” — Philadelphia  North  American. 

“ A model  of  clear  and  thorough  condensation.” — New  York  Tribune. 

“ The  book  is  one  that  should  be  read  by  all  wage  workers.  — The 
Labor  World. 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers  64-66  Pifth  Avenue  New  York 


With  Poor  Immigrants  to  America 

By  STEPHEN  GRAHAM 

Decorated  cloth,  illustrated,  8vo,  $2.00,  carriage  extra 


“We  collected  on  the  quay  at  Liverpool — -English,  Russians,  Jews, 
Germans,  Swedes,  Finns.  . . . Three  hundred  yards  out  in  the  harbor 
stood  the  red  funneled  Cunarder  which  was  to  bear  us  to  America.  . . 
The  beginning  of  the  voyage  is  thus  described,  a voyage  during  which 
the  reader  sees  life  from  a new  angle.  The  trip  across  is,  however,  but 
the  forerunner  of  even  more  interesting  days.  Stephen  Graham  has 
the  spirit  of  the  real  adventurer  and  the  story  of  his  intimate  association 
with  the  immigrants  is  an  intensely  human  and  dramatic  narrative,  valu- 
able both  as  literature  and  as  a sympathetic  interpretation  of  a move- 
ment which  too  frequently  is  viewed  only  with  unfriendly  eyes. 

“Mr.  Graham  has  the  spirit  of  the  real  adventurer.  He  prefers 
people  to  the  Pullmans,  steerage  passage  to  first  cabin.  In  his  min- 
gling with  the  poorer  classes  he  comes  in  contact  intimately  with  a life 
which  most  writers  know  only  by  hearsay,  and  interesting  bits  of  this 
life  and  that  which  is  picturesque  and  romantic  and  unlooked  for  he 
transcribes  to  paper  with  a freshness  and  vividness  that  mark  him  a 
good  mixer  with  men,  a keen  observer  and  a skillful  adept  with  the 
pen.”  — North  American. 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 


Publishers 


64-66  Fifth  Avenue 


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